Uchiha Riz
by 1Aryana
Summary: Itachi has a younger sister whom is just as powerful as him. Older than Sasuke, she still acts like a child and she absolutely adores both Itachi and Sasuke. And she knows the real reason for the clan's destruction. How will this change things?
1. Preface

_**A/N: Another story people! Wow, I'm on a roll! This is the prologue, and it starts out before Itachi has killed his clan. Much of this will surprise you, especially if you have read some of my other stories. And I'm sorry if I get their ages wrong, but they fit how I put them, so I'll say it works. And if you don't like something in here, I'm sorry, but that's how it came out love.**_

_**I hope you all enjoy this story!**_

_**Summary: Itachi has a younger sister whom is just as powerful as him. Older than Sasuke, she still acts like a child and is shunned by her father because she refuses to become an ANBU. She absolutely adores both Itachi and Sasuke. And she knows the real reason for the clan's destruction.**_

**Tsukiyomi World looks like this.**

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Prologue:

Itachi had just come back from another mission, and had been immediately pounced on by Sasuke.

"Nii-san! You're back! I missed you! Hey! You can help me with training now!"

"Perhaps later otooto. Why don't you ask Riz?"

"I can't find her, she's been gone all day. Come on Nii-san! You promised!"

"Sorry otooto. I will later." Itachi poked him in the forehead and got up to go see their parents.

"Nii-san! You're back!" he was promptly tackled to the floor by none other than his other sibling, Riz.

"You know Sasuke has been looking for you?"

"What? No hello? How terribly rude Ita-chan. If you're looking for mother and father, they're in the kitchen. Mum was making something new. Father's the test subject!"

"Is that why you've been gone all day? To avoid that?"

"No, it's just so much fun to see Sasu-chan trying to find me." She smiled impishly and vanished. She went and snuck up behind Sasuke.

"Saaaasssuuukkkkkeeeee!" she said it slowly, in a creepy little voice.

"Who's there?!" she laughed.

"It'ssss meeeee! Your conscience!" she jumped him then, tying his hands to a tree. She stood above him and laughed.

"Hey! You're so mean Nee-san!"

"Heh, come on Sasu-chan, think of it as training. If you had been able to sense me, then this wouldn't have happened!"

"Come on! Lemme go!"

"Fine, fine. Calm down." She untied him and sat down beneath the tree.

"Where have you been all day Nee-san?"

"Hm, well, I watched you try to find me for a bit, reported to the Hokage, went for a walk, and trained a bit. I couldn't find a sparring partner though, everyone was busy. And I have a mission tomorrow, I'll be gone for about a week."

"A week?! Have you told Mother and Father? And why didn't you take me training? Come on Nee-san! I've been asking forever!"

"Hold on, how many questions was that? Yes, a week at least. No, I have not told them yet. And I'll take you training later, after dinner, okay? We could even rope Nii-chan into coming as well."

"Really?! Yay! I can't wait! What kind of training are we going to do?"  
"Well, we can't very well spar with you, so how about throwing practice?"

"Okay! I'll get my kunai!" she grabbed the back of his shirt before he could run off.

"Sasu-chan! I said later! Not right now!"

"Fine. Come on, let's go see what's for dinner!" she rolled her eyes.

"All right. Let's go." They went into the house and headed toward the kitchen. They were almost there when they ran into Itachi.

"Hey Nii-san!"

"Hey Ita-chan! I promised Sasu-chan that we'd do some throwing practice with him later tonight. You will be coming, right?"

"No."

"Eh?! Why ever not? I all ready promised him, and I won't be able to spend time with you two for another week!"

"I'm assuming you have a mission tomorrow."

"Yeah, I was just going to tell Mum and Father. Is he in a good mood today?"

"Are you still avoiding him? It's been three weeks."

"And he's still angry with me!"

"Nee-san, wouldn't it be easier to become an ANBU though?"

"But I don't want to be one! Besides, then I would have to follow Nii-chan's orders."

"Stop acting like such a child! Being an ANBU is a great honor! You had the chance to be great, and follow in your brother's footsteps, and you passed it by! Such a fool! You are a mockery to the Uchihas!" they all turned to see their father standing there, glaring at Riz, again. She sighed and disappeared. Itachi sighed and followed her, Sasuke just stood there before going into the kitchen and asking about dinner. Itachi found Riz in a tree at the training grounds.

"How did I know you would be here?"

"Probably because I always come here. I am so sick of him saying that! Why does it matter?! He all ready has one perfect child! I don't want to be like that! It's not appealing at all! And if I was an ANBU, I would hardly ever be able to see Sasu-chan. I all ready hardly ever get to see you! It's not fair!" Riz sighed, "I'm glad for my mission tomorrow now."

"It'll be fine Riz. Would sparring help?"

"Heh. Thanks, but no. Did I tell you that I started training in medical jutsu?" Itachi blinked.

"No, you didn't. You want to be a medic?"

"Not really, but I'm pretty good at it. And it's an amazing feeling to be able to save someone's life like that. I just want to know the basics so that I can be useful, and perhaps even get Father to like me more." She sighed and leaned back.

"He still likes you Riz."

"I'm not so sure about that." She looked away and bit her lip, trying to decide about something, "Ita-chan?"

"Hm?"

"...Never mind. I'll tell you when I get back. We should go back home though. I did promise Sasuke throwing practice though. And I did say I would get you to come."

"And I said no."

"I never did say you had much of a choice." Itachi looked up and was met by her famous imp grin. He groaned inwardly as she tackled him out of the tree. She tied his hands behind his back with chakra binding cuffs.

"Where did you get those?!"

"I nicked them of course. After last year, people won't sell them to me. Thanks to you."

"For this exact reason too."

"Come on Ita-chan! Lighten up! If you promise to come with me and otooto, I'll let you go."

"Fine. Let me go now."

"That wasn't a promise."

Itachi sighed, "I promise I will go with you and otooto tonight for throwing practice. Better?"

"Much." She let him go and grinned, "Come on, let's go back. You want to get something to eat on the way? I sure don't want to sit at the table with Father after that bit."

Itachi rolled his eyes and smiled, "All right, but you get to pay. Where should we go?"

"Ramen Ichiraku's?"

"I should have known." They laughed and made there way to the place. Once they got there, they found someone else there. It was a small child.

"Huh? Hey kid, shouldn't you be home? It's getting pretty late for you to be out alone." They entered the restaurant and realized who the child was. Naruto looked up at them before quickly glancing down.

"Um, okay then."

"What'll it be?"

"Hm, I'll have the shrimp ramen!"

"Miso."

"Geez, you always order the same thing Ita-chan. I'm starting to get the feeling that ramen isn't your favorite food." She poked him in the side, playfully pouting.

"How'd you guess?" Their orders were laid in front of them, and Riz immediately dug in. Once they were done, they headed back home.

"We have to hurry! If we don't, we won't have time for throwing practice with otooto!" Itachi laughed, but still started running.

"Race you!" Riz ran ahead. They both ended up at the back porch out of breath from running, pushing each other away, and fighting some in order to win. They called it a tie. They hadn't even opened the door before they were pounced upon by Sasuke. Riz managed to dodge before Sasuke pounced, the same couldn't be said for Itachi.

"Nii-san! Nee-san! Are we going out now?"

"Yes, we are. Ita-chan's coming too."

"Yay! Come on, let's go!" He started to pull Itachi up and towards the training grounds.

"Sasu-chan! Wait! Do you even have any kunai or shurikan with you?" Sasuke paused.

"I'll be right back!" He ran inside, leaving Itachi on the ground. He chuckled as he stood up.

"What?" He asked when he noticed Riz looking at him curiously.

"Nothing. Sasu-chan's back."

"Come on! Let's go!" Riz grinned and followed Sasuke, letting him lead the way.

"Come on Ita-chan!" He sighed, but smiled and followed them regardless. The training grounds were empty, giving them the perfect opportunity to practice. Riz opted to set up the targets, while Itachi helped Sasuke by showing him how best to throw the kunai. By the time Riz came back, Itachi was all ready tired, having to show Sasuke over and over again.

"The best way to get better is to try it out. Instruction won't get you anywhere." She laughed when glared at by Itachi.

"Otooto, find out where the targets are first." Sasuke started to run off, "Without moving." Sasuke froze.

"How do I do that Nii-san?"

"Riz put the targets the same way she would put a team when dealing with an enemy." Sasuke frowned but looked around.

"I can see five of the six. One would be on the other side of that rock, another behind that tree, one in the branches, one in between those two trees over there, and another on the ground behind those bushes. But where's the last one?"

"Think."

"I don't know! I'm sorry!"

"Calm down Sasu-chan. It's right here." She pointed to a tree beside him. His confusion was clear and she wiped her hand across it, revealing the target.

"The simplest disguise possible. You need to try harder. Sometimes, the most obvious places are the best places to hide."

"That makes no sense!"

"Think about it Sasuke. You barely even looked here, more focused on trying to find something hidden better. When a place is too obvious, a person will overlook it, deciding their enemy would have chosen a better spot. It can be a fatal mistake. Understand?"

"Yes Nee-san!"

"Good. Now, try and hit the targets." She covered the target back up and stepped back, "After this, you should try hitting Ita-chan. Usually, targets move. They don't want to be hit." She looked back at Itachi and laughed.

"I am not going to be a training dummy!"

"Calm down Ita-chan. You get to dodge, and besides, think of it as training. If you can't dodge this, then either you're terrible, or Sasu-chan's wonderful. Unless you're saying you can't do it?" Itachi glared at her.

"You'll do it next then."

"Fine. Begin Sasu-chan!" After about five tries, Sasuke managed to hit all but three of the targets. Two he hit, but wasn't able to hit the bulls eyes.

"Okay, that's enough. Ita-chan?" He sighed but jumped into the trees, making sure to stay visible.

"Sasu-chan, try to hit him, and no holding back." Riz could feel the glare directed at her from the trees, "Begin!" She chirped happily. Sasuke instantly started throwing Kunai and shurikan at Itachi, making him jump away.

"Don't just throw at random Sasu-chan. Stay calm, even when you miss!" Sasuke's throwing slowed, but the aim started to get better. They stopped when Itachi was hit.

"I'm sorry Nii-san!"

"It's fine." Riz went up to him and looked at his arm.

"It's just a scratch."

"I'm sorry Nii-san."

"He'll be fine. My turn!"

"Begin Otooto." Sasuke started his throwing again. Riz jumped into the trees, effectively dodging the weapons. After almost an hour, she finally was hit. A small scratch that matched Itachi's.

"Well, you're getting better."

"Good job Sasu-chan." Sasuke grinned.

"We should get home." Riz looked up at the dark sky.

"Shimatta*! It's late _and_ I have a mission in the morning! Come on, we better get going! Besides, Mum's probably worried about you Sasu-chan."

"No she isn't. She knows I've been with you." Riz grinned.

"We still need to get back. Come on Sasu-chan." He got on her back and they walked back to the compound. About halfway there, Riz pushed Itachi hard and began to run, yelling behind her.

"Race you Ita-chan!" Sasuke looked back and saw Itachi glare and begin to run after them. Even though he was glaring, he had a small smile on his face. Riz jumped onto the rooftops and went that way. She beat Itachi home by around twenty-five seconds. Before Itachi or Sasuke could say anything, she held up her hand and pointed at the dark building.

"Stay quiet, we don't want to wake any of them up."

"Any of who up?" The three siblings turned around to find their mother smiling at them, "You shouldn't have stayed out so late, especially with a mission in the morning. Your father's asleep, so take care not to wake him." She walked off.

"You are so lucky it wasn't father." Riz glared at Itachi.

"So are you. He would be pissed. Come on Sasu-chan, we need to get you to bed." She let him down and they all headed up to their rooms. After they tucked Sasuke in, Itachi followed Riz to her room.

"What? I don't really need an escort. I can handle myself easily."

"You kept trying to tell me something all day. What is it?" She looked away slightly.

"I also said I would tell you when I got back."

"Riz. It's obviously bothering you."

"Of course it is!" she snapped at him, "Sorry, but I promise I'll tell you as soon as I get back, if I have time. Okay?" He sighed.

"Fine. Get some rest." She watched him leave before flopping down on her bed, bag all ready packed.

"_I wonder how he'll react when I tell him? Oh well, no use worrying about it now."_ She closed her eyes and slept.

* * *

She woke up an hour before the sun. She sighed, grabbed her bag, and jumped out of the window. Just as she was leaving the compound, she was stopped by Itachi.

"Ano? Ita-chan? What are you doing?"

"One, you were going to leave without eating again. Two, is it a crime to see my imooto off?" He handed her an energy bar. She smiled at him before pushing him.

"Sometimes, you actually act like an older brother, it's so adorable!" He pretended to be shocked.

"What? I don't always?" She laughed.

"I have to go Ita-chan. I'll see you in about a week." She waved and disappeared. Itachi went back inside to get ready to report to the Hokage. Riz met up with her partner for this mission. They greeted each other and set out.

* * *

Itachi had gone back inside and gotten himself something to eat. He was supposed to meet with the Hokage about an hour after dawn, and he was planning on using the extra time to his advantage. He helped his mother with some work in the gardens and, as soon as Sasuke got up, taught him more on the proper care of his tools.

"Not just your kunai and shurikan Sasuke. Sleeping bag, tent, everything needs to be well cared for."

"All right Nii-san!" Itachi looked up and decided it was time for him to leave. He told Sasuke to not forget anything and took off. He received a mission from the Hokage that told him to leave now. He went home and packed anything he might need before leaving. It was a simple mission to deliver a message to the mist country. Shouldn't take more than four days. He picked up the scroll and left the village, heading for the mist. He didn't mind, but he knew that once Sasuke got home, he would be alone. Itachi shook his head, he hated having extended missions at the same time Riz did. In truth, he was glad she never became an ANBU, neither of them liked to leave Sasuke alone so much.

* * *

Meanwhile, Riz had all ready made it past the forest outside of Konoha. They stopped there for a rest and opened their mission scroll.

"Did the Hokage tell you what we're going to be doing?"

"No, he only told me where." The ANBU beside her nodded and handed her the scroll.

"It's an S-ranked mission. We have to apprehend Shiroshi and rescue the children he has captured. We do not need to bring him back alive. Konoha recently heard about the kidnapping and just a few days ago we got word of his location. Understand?"

She sighed, "Yeah, I was wondering why I got paired with an ANBU. I have a question though. Wouldn't it be better to not dress as if we were hunting him? We could even use different names in order to not alert him to our presence. Also, how old are the children and is there any pattern in the kidnappings?"

"The children have all been around 13 and 16; there's no real pattern, but all of the children were female." Riz blinked and had a disgusted look on her face. She shrugged it off.

"All right then, so Shiroshi targets my gender, as well as my age group. Well, isn't that lovely. Okay, so we should make it look like we're normal travelers. My name will be Atsura and I'll be your younger sister. You can choose your own name. Now, we just need to get some different clothes."

"Why are we doing this?"

"What, you don't want me as a sister?" She grinned at him, "Because, if we get near his location and we don't threaten him, we could get to him easier. I'm hoping that he'll take a liking to me as well. How about it 'Kashi?" Kakashi grinned behind his mask as he got her hint and nodded.

"Where are we going to get traveling clothes then?"

"You have money, right?"

"Yes."

"Good, there should be a village nearby. I'll go buy the clothes since what I'm wearing is less conspicuous. What size you need? Or do you want me to guess?"

"You can guess." He jumped into a tree and took out an orange book, taking off his ANBU mask. She threw a rock at him, knocking the book out of his hands.

"Hey!" He jumped down and attempted to take the book away from her. She laughed and dodged him.

"Kashi, why are you even reading this? I can't believe you brought this with you on our mission!"

"Riz, give it back. Please?"

"And just why should I do that?"

"Because you need to go into the village for clothes and carrying that with you probably wouldn't be the best choice."

"All right then." She threw the book behind her. Kakashi jumped after it, catching it before it even hit the ground.

"Are you going to get the clothes or not?"

"Fine. Give me the money, I'll be back." She pouted and glared at him. He sighed and handed her the money. He stopped her from leaving though. Before she could protest, he slipped his mask down and kissed her. After a moment he pulled away and slipped his mask up, jumping back into the tree. Riz shook her head and headed to the village. When she got there she began looking around at the shops. She had made sure to put on a skirt over her shorts so no one would see her weapons her headband attached there. When she got to a clothing store, she went in and immediately started looking at things for Kashi to wear.

"May I help you?"

"Ah, yes please. I'm trying to fine some clothes for my brother, but I'm afraid I'm not quite sure what would be the most appropriate."

"Well, this outfit here is a good choice, strong, flexible, and warm. Perfect for any traveler."

"Really? Thank you very much, that definitely helps." She found a size that should fit Kakashi and studied it, "This should be perfect. I think he likes this color anyway!" The man laughed.

"I'm pretty sure he doesn't care as much about the color as you seem to. Anything else you need?"

"If you don't mind, I need another set of clothing, these are getting ragged; not to mention they aren't warmest. Besides, they don't look that well on me."

"Over here then. I'm sure we could find something for you. This is the best store around!" Riz smiled at him and followed to the other side of the store.

"Oh my! This is beautiful!" Her hand lingered on a dark blue and purple dress.

"Yes it is, but it won't keep you warm, and it isn't the best for traveling in. Now, if you were going for a night on the town, it would make you the most envied girl around! This though, this is made some of the same material as that outfit for your brother. But, it comes in many different colors and, depending on what style you want, can hang around your frame, or cling to it. So? How about it?"

"This is wonderful! Just what I'm looking for! Oh my, do you think this color would look good on me?" She picked up a deep purple shirt and some dark blue pants, both the type that could cling to her.

"You sure do like those colors, don't you? Well, you can try them on over there, there are mirrors and everything." He spotted another person coming in, "Excuse me. Can I help you sir?" Riz went into the changing rooms and tried them on, looking in the mirror. The clothes fit and the colors could hide her weapons fairly well. Plus she liked the colors. She smiled and changed back into her original clothes, exiting the rooms and taking the stack of clothes with her. She went up to the counter to pay and waited for the man to get back from helping another customer. Riz watched as the shop owner showed off the dress she had liked, glancing away when she was looked at. That man gave her chills.

"_There's something about him that I don't like. Damn, I can't even check using chakra just in case Shiroshi's nearby."_ She glared at the clothes she was holding, trying to figure out why she had this feeling.

"Are you changing your mind about the clothes?"

"Huh? Oh, no, I'm just worried that my brother may not like this color."

"I'm sure it'll be fine. Well, all of that will cost about 6000 yen." Riz got out the money and counted it.

"Oh! I'm sorry, I don't have enough money; I'm about 200 yen short. I'll have to put something back." She was about to remove the shirt for her when someone else put 200 yen on the table.

"Here, I'll give you it. No big deal." The man smiled at her and another chill ran down her spine.

"Thanks."

"Don't mention it. Just be careful out there."

"Why?"

"Haven't you heard? Some young girls have been disappearing lately. We wouldn't want the same to happen to a pretty thing like you." He grinned at her again.

"I'll be careful, thank you." She set her money down and left the door, hurrying back to where she had left Kakashi.

"You're back."

"Obviously." She threw him his clothes and went behind a tree to change. She came out to see Kashi dress in a light gray outfit.

"Well?"

"What?"

"Have you thought of a name for yourself?"

"Hmm, well, how about Hideo**?"

"Is that supposed to be a joke?"

"What? You don't agree?" Riz rolled her eyes.

"Fine, Hideo it is. So, shall we go? By the way, you need to remove your headband."

"Did you?"

"Hidden." Kashi shrugged and put the headband into his bag.

"Anything interesting happen in the village?"

"Well, I don't think Shiroshi is near the Waterfall village anymore." Kashi gave her an inquiring look, "There have been kidnappings of young girls in the village; I was warned by someone else in the store."

"And?"  
"And what?"

"There's something else."

"I think I met Shiroshi. If I'm right, he's the one that told me of the kidnappings and warns me to be careful." They fell silent as they entered the village. They went to a hotel and got a room. Once they were in there, they soundproofed the room and sat down, discussing their plans.

"I'm going out tonight."

"Where?"

"I want to see the village. Perhaps I'll hear some interesting rumors."

"Perhaps you'll get kidnapped." She smirked.

"Well, aren't you a smart one. If I'm not back by morning, then I was taken. I'll stick to the main streets and leave a sign where I was taken from. All right? If I can, I'll leave a small trail you could follow." Kashi nodded, but it was obvious he didn't like the plan. Riz sighed.

"What's wrong?"

"I don't want you to get taken."

"Ka-Hideo, I can handle myself. I've made sure I can carry weapons in this fabric without anyone noticing, so calm down." Kashi sighed and hugged her.

"Fine, get going then." He let go and lay down on the bed, taking his book out, "I'll pretend like I'm not sending you off to be captured by an S-class criminal. Good luck on your stroll _Atsura_" She rolled her eyes and kissed his forehead.

"An Uchiha doesn't fall that easily, remember that." She tapped his forehead above his left eye and he turned away. She sighed and left the room. Last thing he heard was her reminder: _"Don't forget."_

She wandered the streets, looking at various shops and chatting at random. Apparently, the kidnapping had started less than a week ago, not too long after Konoha last heard of Shiroshi in the Waterfall village. After walking around for another hour and hearing nothing new, she decided to get something to eat. She counted the money she took and came up with 1000 yen.

"_Perfect. That should be enough to get something."_ She kept walking, asking a few people for placing she could eat. She ended up at a street stand and bought herself some dumplings. She didn't like dumplings that much, but they seemed popular around here, so it was worth a shot. When she finished the overly sweet dumplings, she started to walk slowly back to the hotel again, looking around as if admiring the sights. It was fairly dark out. She got to the hotel and started to go in when she got chills again. She quickly glanced behind her, but saw nothing, but she could sense someone nearby. She smiled to herself.

"_Bingo."_ She was jumped by three men, one holding her down, another tying her arms and legs, and he last one covered her mouth and smiled before knocking her out. Her last thoughts were: _"Perfect. Let's see how Kashi finds me."_ She dropped a small red ring, the same one Kashi had given her when they got together. She let her chakra trickle into a trail that any sharingan could follow, but was unnoticeable to anyone else and allowed blackness to come over her. She woke chained to a wall, wearing the dress she had seen before she bought her clothes.

* * *

Kashi woke early and looked around, noting that Riz wasn't there.

"_Great. How did I know?"_ He went downstairs and acted flustered and worried to the hostess.

"Have you seen my sister? She never came back last night and I don't know where she could have gone!"

"Oh my! Sir, that's terrible! She was probably kidnapped last night, plenty of other girls have been lately. It's so sad! I am so sorry sir!" His eye widened and he took off, asking random people if they had seen her. Many people said yes and that she had most likely been kidnapped. He went back to the hotel looking crestfallen. He saw the ring then and picked it up. He grinned internally and went back into the hotel up to his room. He grabbed both bags and headed back out.

"Sir? Where are you going?"

"I have to find her!" The hostess gave him a sad look, but didn't say anything else. He opened the door and uncovered his left eye, giving the area a quick sweep. He spotted the chakra thread and followed it, hearing whispers and people trying to comfort him. He shrugged them off and kept going. Once he was outside of the village, he broke into a run, following the thread to a lake, where it ended.

"_What? It can't be underwater can it?"_ He scanned the area again and sighed, _"It just had to be underwater."_ Without another thought, he hid the bags and jumped in.

* * *

Riz had started to struggle against her bonds, keeping up the act of the innocent and scared girl.

"Well, it's a pleasure to see you again."

"You?! You were the man from the store!" Her eyes widened.

"My dear girl, I did warn you to be extra careful. It looks like you failed to listen to me." He smirked.

"Who are you?! What do you want from me?!"

"My name is Shiroshi, and you'll know your part soon enough. Do you like your new dress? It looks fabulous on you." He smirked.

"Let me go! Please!" He stroked her cheek and she flinched away.

"I will, don't worry, but you may not be alive when I do. You're going to play an important role later today." He laughed and walked out, letting the other two men in. They unchained her and put a collar on her, leading her out of the room. She made sure to stumble and tremble, making their entire job hell.

"_They don't even bother with anything to bind chakra, and these chains aren't the best either. Looks like this should be easy, and I'll get a free dress out of it!"_

"Please! I don't want to die! Please let me go!"

"Shut up!" One of the men smacked her. She grinned and looked up, her sharingan activated.

"Too bad no one ever suspects a trap with girls." She twirled around and knocked them both out before taking off the collar, handcuffs, and chains. In the distance, she heard some shouting.

"_Looks like Kashi made it here. Looks like our disguises are useless now. Unless…"_ She put the collar and handcuffs back on and dropped herself onto the floor and deactivating the sharingan. Soon after, Shiroshi came into view.

"What happened?!" He glared at her and she trembled.

"I don't know! There was a flash and I was pushed to the ground. And now…" Her voice broke and she shuddered, hugging herself.

"Calm down and follow me." He grabbed her by the leash attached to the collar and pulled her up, nearly dragging her to another room. It was filled with at least fifteen other girls around her age, all of them looked terrified, some were even crying.

"What's going on?!" He pushed her into the middle of the circle and she realized what it was. He was going to kill them all in an ancient ritual to increase his power. If she was right, this particular one wouldn't actually kill them, but make them into mindless dolls that he could control. She looked around at the other girls and found some staring at her. She looked at them and they looked away as if sorry for her. Shiroshi left the room.

"Where are you from?" the girl looked back at her.

"Waterfall village. I was the first one taken." Her voice was shaky.

"Don't worry, it'll be fine." Riz removed her handcuffs and collar again before going around the room and doing the same for the other girls, "I'll get you all out of here and back home." The door opened again, revealing a very angry Shiroshi. His look became murderous when he saw them unchained. Then he smirked.

"Even if you are out of chains, I can still do this." He started on hand signs, concentrating on the jutsu. Riz activated her sharingan and did her own jutsu, much faster than he was.

"Fireball jutsu!" Shiroshi was engulfed in flames that he quickly extinguished. He glared in shock at her.

"A ninja? Not a very good one, seeing as how you were captured so easily. Then he looked in her eyes.

"What?! The sharingan?! You! You're an Uchiha!" She smiled.

"My reputation precedes me. Shiroshi, you are an S-class criminal that manipulates others for power and murder is your idea of fun." She attacked him with one of the senbon in her hair, cutting open his arm, "You like? Your own blood looks fabulous on you." She smirked and attacked. Leading him away from the girls. Despite how he had acted, he was a remarkable ninja. No wonder he was in the bingo book. After a while, Kashi ran into them.

"Next hall, second door!" She yelled and dodged another earth bullet jutsu. She ended up next to him and stared into his eyes.

"Tsukiyomi." He screamed and fell to the ground. Riz stood there panted, nursing numerous cuts. She was trying to heal the largest wound when Kashi came back into view, the girls following him. The girls screamed when they saw her bleeding and Shiroshi on the floor unconscious.

"What happened?"

"Well, I found out why he's in the bingo book."

"I meant how you beat him."

"I used the sharingan. It's a moved called Tsukiyomi and it's very powerful. It's more like a genjutsu than anything else, but his limbs were repeatedly broken, breaking through his skin most times, for 72 hours. In reality, it took, at most, two seconds." Kashi nodded as she stood up, "The drawback is that it takes quite a bit of chakra to perform." She smiled at him before she fainted. Kashi looked behind him and saw that all but three of the girls had all ready fainted, and two of those were now either screaming or crying. The other one walked past him and over to Riz.

"Is she okay?"

"Mostly. She needs to rest." He heard an explosion from down the hall, "But this isn't the best place for that. Can you help me get these girls out of here?" The girl nodded and picked up the youngest girl, carrying her to the exit. Kashi walked over to Riz and tried to wake her up.

"Come on Riz! We can't stay here! If you don't wake up, we're all going to die!" He was splashed with water and looked up. The girl was back, and she was holding a now empty bucket.

"That should help." Kashi looked back at Riz, who was trying to get up.

"Thanks." The girl nodded and went back to the other girls while Kashi helped Riz get up.

"I can walk Kashi." She went over and looked at the girls as another explosion rang through the halls. She sighed and started on hand signs.

"What are you doing?"

"We need to get them out of here."

"You don't have enough chakra for that."

"I do for them."

"You're not planning on getting yourself out as well, are you." She shook her head and finished the signs.

"Make sure all the girls are touching each other." The three girls that weren't unconscious nodded and began to get every hand over lapping another's before grabbing onto each other's. Riz placed her hands down onto the closest hand.

"Kashi, grab on!"

"No." She scowled but let him do as he pleased, "Ankai!" A bright flash of light and the girls were gone, transported to just outside the village. Kashi caught her as she fell and started to run, throwing her onto his back. He dodged and weaved his way through the falling structure. He made it out barely, just as the entire thing fell with one last explosion. He used the last reserves of his energy to swim to the surface and climb onto dry land. He collapsed there, Riz falling off his back. He did one last sweep of the area before falling asleep himself. He woke after it was dark and quickly checked for anything that could possible be considered a threat. When he found none, he looked over to Riz. Seeing her still asleep, he got up and made a fire, pushing her closer to get her warm. He leaned back against a rock and let his eyes close, they had clean-up duty in the morning.

* * *

Riz woke up with the sun in her eyes. She got up and stretched, trying to loosen some of her stiff and bruised muscles. She looked over at Kashi, seeing him starting to wake up. She smiled and went in search of food. When she got back, Kashi had restarted the fire and as soon as he saw her, he jumped up. She handed him the plants she had collected and went to look at the lake. If she looked hard enough, she could see the remains of the building. She didn't react when she felt arms wrap around her and a chin rest on her shoulder.

"Something wrong? By the looks of it, we won't have to clean it up."

"I'm hoping those girl are okay. We need to get back to the village as soon as possible. Any chance you've seen where my clothes went? This dress isn't practical, especially now that it's ripped so much."

"Hmm, I like this dress."

"Kashi." She warned.

"Sorry, they were probably blown up. Come on, I left the packs around here, your other clothes are in them." She nodded.

"I'll boil those plants." Kashi nodded and went to get the packs. She had finished boiling the plants to where they could eat them easily when Kashi returned and tossed her pack over. She caught it and ate her share before pulling out her clothes and went to change. Kashi cleaned up and stretched before Riz came back. They started on back to the village, hoping that the girls were okay and they hadn't missed anything. They entered the village and the first thing they noticed was how quiet it was. Kashi went and asked what was going on and jogged back to Riz.

"Well?"

"The girls returned safely, but it scared the villagers. They think that the girls are evil and have come back to kidnap others. They're marked for death at midday."

"What?! But it's almost midday now! We have to stop them!"

"R-Atsura! Wait! We can't do anything, we finished what we were supposed to do." Riz glared at him and pulled her arm away.

"Those girls did nothing wrong. And most of them are from the Waterfall village. I thought our mission was to rescue them. We might as well have led them to their deaths."

Kashi sighed, "Fine, but we have to be careful with this, all right?" Riz nodded and smiled.

"Thanks Hideo." They went to the center of the village and saw the girls lined up awaiting their sentence. Kashi went up and asked what they had done. Riz waited and watched them argue, Kashi eventually came back.

"I got them to release all of the girls from Waterfall, but the ones from here are still going to be killed. Unless…" He trailed off, staring at the line of girls where ten of them were being led to the edge of the village.

"Unless what Hideo?"

"Unless we want to take them to our village or escort them to Waterfall, or almost anywhere other than here. I'm sure some villagers will also come with them, their families for instance, if they don't believe they changed for the worst." Riz nodded and watched the girls.

"Well, the mission _was_ supposed to take at least a week."

"Atsura, we can't take them back to Konoha."

"Then to Waterfall, or some small village along the way?" Kashi sighed.

"Why did I have to get paired with you for this mission?"

"Love you too." He sighed again before heading back to talk to whom she assumed was the village leader. He came back looking tired.

"Happy now? We get to escort a group of scared girls to Waterfall starting directly in the morning. Maybe more if their families follow us." Riz smiled again and hugged him.

"Thanks Hideo."

"Well, I guess we should get the room at the hotel again." Riz nodded and followed him to the hotel. They got the same room and went in. Since it was still light out, they both took out their tools and made sure they were cleaned and generally in good condition. After they made their plans for the next day, they went to sleep, in need of a good night's sleep.

Kashi woke up first, before the sun had even risen. He looked around the room, wondering what had woken him up and then went to the window. He looked out and saw some of the girls cornered just outside the hotel.

"What's wrong Ka- sorry, Hideo?" Riz walked up to him yawning

"Take a look, you won't like it."

"What the-? It's those girls! What are they doing to them?!" Kashi held her back in time to stop her from going out the window.

"Stop that! It was your idea to be undercover. Letting the villagers know now won't help anything."

"Fine!" She went over and yanked the door open, going down the stairs and outside. Kashi followed her.

"What is going on here?" The group turned and looked at her before sneering.

"None of your business. We're just taking care of a problem." They turned back to the girls, blocking her view. She heard them throw something and some silent sobbing.

"Stop that!" She pushed her way through the group, going towards the girls. She was almost there when one of the men hit her, knocking her down.

"Mind your own business wench." Riz got back up, clenching her fists to refrain from hitting them. She saw Kashi making his way towards her. They heard a laugh go through the crowd and a small scream. She kept pushing her way through, dodging whenever someone tried to stop her.

"_Shimatta! What was the point of being shinobi if we can't help people? Why did I ever suggest going undercover?"_ She shook her head, knowing it had been the best choice. She made it to the girls and went to see if they were okay before she turned around to face the villagers. She had hardly even turned around when people started throwing things at her. Rocks, bottles, anything they had was thrown at her. She caught the single kunai thrown and looked towards the perpetrator, seeing him leaving the crowd. She glanced down in alarm at the kunai and noticed the small paper bomb.

"Get down!" She jumped and threw the kunai into the air, the explosion knocking her back into the hard ground and burning her. When she got back up again, she looked around. The villagers were scurrying away with panicked expressions, and the girls were cowering in the same corner behind her. She looked up to Kashi and saw him walk towards the girls and check them over.

"How are they?"

"They'll be fine. Did you see who threw that at you?" Riz nodded.

"Looks like our disguises aren't very useful anymore." Kashi nodded.

"We need to get all of the girls out of here. We don't know whether they were attacking you or them."

"Or both." She turned to the five girls, "Come on, we're leaving now." They nodded silently and got up, following Kashi. He led them to the village center and found the other ten girls. He motioned for them to follow and they began to leave the village. They were stopped just before they could leave.

"The deal's off. Those girls need to be executed."

"And why is that?"

"I heard about the bomb, and we know they planned it. I will still let you take those from Waterfall back, but the others stay here."

"No."

"Girl, let us men talk. You should learn your place."

"Sorry, but she's right. We had a deal, and we're going to take all of them."

The village leader signaled and they were surrounded by almost twenty armed men.

"Leave the five girls and we'll let you go unharmed. Otherwise, consider yourselves as being under arrest."

"Our mission says to rescue these girls, not let them be executed. So call off your men. We're not here to fight your village."

"What are you talking about? What mission?"

"We were assigned by the Hokage to kill Shiroshi and rescue the kidnapped girls."

"The Hokage? Of the Leaf village?!" Kashi nodded.

"Prove it! You two are travelers! You have no headbands or anything! Men, escort these vagabonds to the prison!" Kashi and Riz sighed.

"No choice then. Hold on girls." She preformed some hand signs again as the girls all grabbed onto one another. Riz completed the jutsu, teleporting them back to the edge of the lake and looked at Kashi. He nodded and they disappeared as well. They met up with the girls at the lake again.

"Well, that didn't work out as well as we hoped. At least they can't very well identify us."

"Other than we're shinobi of the leaf village that had been ordered to kill Shiroshi and rescue some village girls, no, the can't." Riz rolled her eyes.

"Fine, be pessimistic. We need to get going though, before they try to follow us." He sighed and nodded.

"Fine, but I'm changing back into my ANBU outfit first."

"All right. I should change too. My clothes keep seeming to get torn beyond belief." Kashi went a ways away to change, while Riz quickly changed and went to tell the girls their plans.

"Make sure to stay together, okay?" They all nodded.

"You are from Konoha?"

"Yes."

"Can I go to Konoha with you?" Riz looked at the girl.

"You're the one that helped us in there, aren't you?" She nodded.

"Yes, my name is Michiko."*** Riz smiled slightly.

"Why do you want to go to Konoha? Don't you want to go home?"

"I have no home. My parents are dead. I would much rather go somewhere else. Somewhere I know I could be helpful."

"Well…"

"Sure." Riz looked up at Kashi.

"Really?"

"Yeah, we might as well. That way we also have a witness if we get in trouble for what happened back there."

"All right then. Michiko, you're coming to Konoha. But first, we have to get the rest of you to Waterfall. Let's get going now." They nodded and Kashi took up the lead, the girls following him while Riz brought up the rear. She activated the sharingan and watched for danger.

They made good time, and by nightfall, they estimated another day of traveling before they reached Waterfall.

"I'll take the first watch. I'll wake you when it's your turn Kashi. He nodded and they finished setting up camp. They made sure the girls were well off before Kashi jumped into a tree to sleep.

"Sorry you had to give up your tent."

"You did too." She shrugged.

"Get some sleep."

* * *

"_Almost time to wake Kashi. I would let him sleep, but then he'll just get mad at me again."_ She sighed and glanced around again. It was the middle of the night and she was getting bored.

"_Let's see. Owls, ravens, mice, men, snake- wait, Men?!"_ She focused her attention not far to the left of their camp. Sure enough, there were three men headed their way. They were traveling in the trees and making sure to stay quiet and hidden from view.

"_Good thing I have the sharingan then."_ She jumped up besides Kashi and tapped his forehead. His eyes shot open and he sat up silently.

"My turn?" She shook her head and put a finger to her lips before pointing to where she had seen them.

"Three men by tree." She mouthed to him. He nodded and pulled out his katana and motioned for her to take the other side of him. She nodded and jumped to the trees opposite him on the edge of their camp. They waited until the men were closer before exploding into motion, taking them by surprise. Kashi took out one of the men before anyone had time to react while Riz took care of the one closest to her. The last man looked at them both before taking off.

"We need to get any information out of him first. Then we can dispose of him."

"I'll take care of it. You go back to camp and start your watch." Kashi nodded and left while she took off after the man. She headed him off half a mile away, dodging any traps, jutsu, and kunai thrown at her. She forced him to look at her.

"Tsukiyomi."

"**For the next 72 hours your limbs will be continuously ripped off. But, if you tell me everything you know, and I will know if you lie, it won't have to be as painful."**

"**Where am I?!"**

"**Answer the question." One of her clones grabbed an arm.**

"**Please, stop! I'll tell you anything!"**

"**I asked for everything."**

"**Everything then! I'll tell you everything!" He screamed as his arms and legs were torn off and sewn back on.**

"**I'm waiting."**

"**Please stop!"**

"**You'll have to talk first. After that, it may end."**

"**Please! We were sent after you!"**

"**By?"**

"**I don't know! We all worked for him, even Shiroshi! AAAGGGHHHH!!!"**

"**Continue."**

"**We escaped from the lake in time, and he told us to go after those that destroyed the place and kill them. To kill the girls too."**

"**So, you, your two comrades, and this other man were the only ones to survive?"**

"**No. There are three more. The went a different direction to your camp." Another scream.**

"**Do you know where your leader is now?"**

"**Please…"**

"**Answer me."**

"**AAAGGHHH!!!"**

"**Now."**

"**About a mile from here!"**

"**Anything else?"**

"**No! That's all I know! Please!"**

"**Fine."**

She took him out of the Tsukiyomi and he fell limp. She walked over to him and broke his neck and burned the body before taking off in the direction opposite the camp.

"_Kashi can handle himself. But I'm worried about the girls."_ She cleared her mind, settling into her shinobi mode. A trained killer, that was what she was, and her prey was trying to get away. She searched the area, finding him easily..

"_A genjutsu? That's it? How pathetic."_ She jumped out at him, enjoying his face and how he still didn't move.

"A genjutsu won't work on me love. You'll have to try harder than that." She watched his face change to shock before settling into calm once more.

"Well done, to be able to find me and see through my genjutsu, I congratulate you. I must ask though, why come find me? Surely you are worried about those girls at your camp." Riz struck, sending him flying and performing hand signs. Before he had time to do anything other than right himself, the jutsu hit him.

"Phoenix Flower Jutsu!" As he lay there, right before he died, she told him one last thing.

"Little mice shouldn't talk, it does nothing to distract the ferret." She left, heading back to camp. She got there to see Kashi trying to get the girls to calm down.

"Rough night?" Kashi glanced up at her.

"We were attacked again by… You knew?"

"Yes. I caught up with the other guy and questioned him. He told me there were three more going to attack and who gave them the orders to."

"And who was that?"

"I don't know. I didn't recognize him at all. If you want to take a look, his body is about a mile and a half from here."

"No, it's fine."

"Then we should get going, I doubt anyone is going to get anymore sleep, and it's going to be light soon." She sighed and sat down, leaning against a tree, "If possible, can the girls pack up the tents?"

"We will. You both should rest." Riz smiled gratefully.

"Thank you Michiko."

"Do you know how to pack them?"

"Of course. I'll make sure they do not get torn and they are packed correctly." She walked away.

"You know, I think she's actually older than I am."

"It can't be by much. None of the girls were over 16."

"Yeah, I know. It still seems odd to have her older than I am, yet I am the one protecting her. Oh well." Riz watched her for a bit, "She would have made a good shinobi give the chance. Maybe a teacher?"

"Hm? Yeah."

"Are you even listening to me?" She looked up only to find him watching her, "What?" He grinned and grabbed her, jumping into the tree. They were high enough that no one could see them through the foliage.

"What was that for?!" He didn't answer her; he just sat down with his back against the trunk and pulled her close so she was leaning against him. She twisted around to look at him. It was times like this she was glad for her flexibility.

"Are you that embarrassed of liking me that you have to hide?" He sighed.

"Must you make everything into something so bad? I finally get some time with you, and it's on a mission that we hardly even get any rest." He sighed again, starting to pull out his book.

"If you take that out, I'll throw you down and scream rape." Kashi chuckled nervously and carefully put the book away. He wrapped his arms around her instead. She rolled her eyes and pulled down his mask, feeling him stiffen and glance around quickly.

"Calm love, it was your idea to hide up here." She kissed him tenderly before she turned back around and leaning against him, settling down to rest. She leaned her head back and felt him rest his chin on top of her.

"Now are you glad we brought those girls, _Hideo_?" She heard him laugh quietly.

"Yes. And I will give you full credit for it even _Atsura_." She sighed and closed her eyes, listening to the girls pack everything away.

They realized they had dosed off when they heard Michiko call up to them.

"We finished packing everything and are ready to leave now. Unless you wish to rest some more?" They jumped down.

"Nope, we're fine. You don't have to be so formal either. You can call me Atsura and he's Hideo." Michiko looked at them with the type of look that says she knows something, but shrugged it off, handing them their packs. They thanked her and gathered the girls. They set off again, Kashi in front, Riz in back, same as always. They sped up their pace, now that everyone was rested and had been reassured that no one was coming after them. They made it to Waterfall without any more trouble. The villagers were ecstatic to see the girls, and after hearing about the five that weren't from there, they were more than happy to care for them. They stayed the night there, sharing a room with Michiko.

Kashi woke up and noticed that for once, he was the last to wake. He got up and stretched before going to change. He rummaged around, trying to find his gear when Riz came back into the room. She tossed his clothes to him.

"I got them washed." He nodded and slipped into them, following her downstairs. Some of the girls had come to saw goodbye, but Michiko was nowhere to be seen. He tilted his head slightly.

"She'll be back soon." He nodded and went to get some breakfast. He was happily surprised to see that they didn't have to pay for food. He grabbed a plateful of stuff and went back to the room. Planning on eating and packing everything at the same time. Riz stayed downstairs and chatted with some villagers, gathering any information they could use or report. By the time she came back up, Kashi had finished packing and had taken a shower. He looked up when she came in and flopped down on the floor.

"Is it that hard to talk to people?"

"Is it just me, or are you extremely amused at this?" He chuckled.

"Your call." She turned to him and glared.

"For your information, there are plenty of people down there, all with something to say. Plus, they all seem to want to tell me everything, including stories of just about anything they can think of!" Kashi tried to hide his laughter from her.

"Well, was there anything useful?"

"I don't know. Let me sort through the information I've received so far before I go back down there. I've been flirting with most of the guys, and they want to talk to me still. Just not with so many people around." She looked up and him and chuckled at his face, "Jealous?" He glared at her and she smiled, "Well, since I'xm going off with a group of boys, it's your turn to talk to everyone. You should also see if Michiko is back yet. We can leave once she is."

"She's still not there?"

"No, and that worries me. She should have been by now." She got up and stretched, heading back downstairs, "Just keep an eye out. Now come on, you get to listen to the villagers now."

"You make it sound like torture or something." She heard the amusement and smirked.

"Have fun." They entered the foyer and Kashi saw what she meant. The place was crowded; there was hardly any room for movement, but somehow, everyone managed. He glanced at Riz in time to see her smirk and head out the door. He scowled inwardly before heading over to a table with an available seat.

"Hello! You're one of the people that brought our girls home right? Thanks so much! Here, let me buy you a drink and we can chat, how about it?" The man slapped him on the back as more people crowded around. Kashi sighed as he realized exactly what Riz meant by her last smirk. He tried to listen to them, but he couldn't catch everything. It seemed like everyone was talking to him at once, with anything they could get out of their mouths. He groaned inwardly as more drinks were bought for him. He still hadn't touched one.

* * *

Meanwhile, Riz had gone to where the guys she had been flirting with had told her to meet. She glanced around, finding no one and looked at the sun. It was past the time they were to meet.

"_Unless they're like Kashi, they should be here by now. Perhaps they stood me up?"_ She scowled at the thought, remembering her first date with Kashi.

_Flashback:_

_She had shown up on time. Well, to be completely honest, she was about ten minutes late, but nobody's perfect. She scowled and glared at the darkening sky. After waiting for about ten more minutes, she went in search of him. She found him at the memorial stone, staring at it. Eventually, he reached out and traced a name._

"_I have to go now." He sighed and headed in the direction she had just come from. She waited until he was gone before going over to the stone and reading the name where he had touched._

"_Uchiha Obito? Ah, that's right. They were friends." She shook her head and went back to the designated meeting spot. After waiting another minute, Kashi came into view._

"_Hello."_

"_Hi."_

"_What took you so long?"_

"_Well, there was his cat stuck in a tree, and I just had to get it down, then-"_

"_Liar." He raised an eyebrow._

"_Hey now, no need to be mean."_

"_I went looking for you." His smile fell and any emotion left. She smiled at his response, "I liked Obito. He would play with me when I was younger." She stared at the sky for a minute before looking at him, "I miss him as well. It's not a bad thing to morn, but perhaps it doesn't have to take so long? You're lucky I didn't just leave and go back home." She smiled at him and he scratched the back of his head. He jerked slightly when she grabbed his arm._

"_Well, since you __**were**__ late, it is your duty to treat me to a good dinner tonight." She grinned and led him away, a smile sneaking its way onto his face._

_End Flashback._

She shook her head and noticed three people coming towards her, the guys from earlier. She waved.

"Hello!" She let her hand down slowly as they spread out. She sighed, "Is there something wrong?" The remark was instantly regretted as they all grinned at her and chuckled.

"Nothing is wrong. We just thought of ways to make you look even better tonight."

"Are you drunk?" They laughed again.

"No, don't worry about that." They started to advance on her.

"Fools. I'm not in the mood to be jumped again. If you have anything interesting to tell me, do it now."

"You don't seem to understand. You are ours now, to do with as we please." She rolled her eyes.

"Am I to assume you have nothing to tell me and you lured me out here just to rape me?"

"Aren't you a smart one. But we won't be just raping you, such an ugly word. You'll enjoy it soon enough." They moved closer and she scowled.

"I hate people trying to play me. You **wil****l** regret that." They pounced and she moved, quickly pinning them down and knocking all but one out.

"Tell me now, did you have anything remotely useful to tell me?" She pressed a kunai to his throat, watching his eyes widen.

"No! Nothing you haven't heard all ready today!" She smirked and put the kunai away before hitting him in the back of the head. She got back up and walked back to the inn.

"_Well, that was a waste of my time, but I doubt they'll be trying that again any time soon._

She entered the inn to find it even more crowded if at all possible. She headed to her room, but something seemed to be blocking the door. She pushed harder and heard someone move, allowing the door to open. She stifled a laugh when she saw Kashi sprawled out on the floor and Michiko laying a rag his neck with an equally amused look on her face.

"Is it that hard to talk to people?" He turned his head and glared at her.

"Were you trying to kill me?! I was practically mobbed!"

"You're whining." He glared at her again and turned his head back to the floor. Michiko put the rag back on.

"Shouldn't we be going now? I made sure to get supplies for the trip, along with the few things I wanted."

"Yes, we should be going, but it looks like Hideo wishes to stay here. Don't worry about him though, I'm sure the villagers would be more than happy to have him here." She didn't move when he jumped up and grabbed his bag, heading for the door.

"Shall we?" The two girls laughed and grabbed their packs, following after him. They made it out of the village with hardly any trouble. Once they were past the village border, they went faster and looked for a good place to set up camp. They were still traveling when it was dark, until Michiko suggested they set up camp. The two shinobi looked at her in surprise, jostled out of their thoughts, before looking up and noticed it was late.

"Sorry, it looks like we weren't paying much attention."

"I could tell." They set up camp in silence. Kashi pulled out a map and they figured out where they were.

"Well, if we continue at this pace, we should be back to Konoha in about three to four days."

"We need to go faster, our week is up tomorrow."

"We could travel in the trees, if you want. I'm good at it." They both looked at her in shock.

"When did you travel by trees?"

"As a child, I would always climb in trees. Eventually, I started jumping from tree to tree." She shrugged and Riz smiled while Kashi sighed.

"Good. We'll do that then, but there are places where we can't, and it could still take a while to travel."

"I have a question."

"What?"

"What are your actual names?" They glanced at her again before Riz grinned.

"You are a smart girl, aren't you. I am fully going to recommend you to become a ninja and a teacher."

"What? No, you don't have to-"

"No trouble. This is Hatake Kakashi, and ANBU of the Hidden Leaf. I'm Uchiha Riz, a jounin."

"From what I've heard, ANBU only go on missions with other ANBU or alone. Why is this different?"

"Because she's too stubborn to become an ANBU." Riz glared at and shrugged.

"That's basically it. According to most in the village, I might as well be an ANBU. I just don't want to be one, so I've stayed a jounin." Michiko nodded.

"Well, we could keep going during the night, or start earlier in the mornings if you want to, it won't bother me."

"No. Visibility is limited during the night, and we can't depend solely on Riz for that. We could start out earlier maybe, but there has to be some light out." Michiko nodded and went into the tent, curling up in a corner. Riz glared at Kashi.

"Must you be so harsh? If you're going to deny something, you could at least try to be nicer about it."

"It should've been obvious."

"We were the ones that lost track of time and continued during dark!"

"We were being careless, something that shouldn't have happened."

"She couldn't have known that night travel isn't the best idea! We have traveled at night plenty of time before Kashi!"

"She's smart right? She should've-" He was cut of as Riz smacked him, knocking him to the ground.

"My watch." She jumped into a tree and ignored him the rest of the night, not even getting him for his watch.

The next two days were passed in silence. Michiko kept looking between the two, seeing the tension there and sighed. She had been faster than they thought, and were around two hours away from Konoha. She sighed again, the dark atmosphere pressing on everything. Looking back, she could almost see a trail of it.

* * *

Itachi had been back from his mission for a while now, and had received no others that took him away for longer than the day. He was heading to his room when he over heard his father talking to some other members of the clan that were considered to be high in power.

"Calm. It will be soon. We still have yet to decide how to get my elder children to do as we wish."

"They're your children, just make them!"

"You underestimate them."

"If we all, persuade, them, there should be no trouble." There was a pause.

"All right then, three days after Riz comes back, we will begin the plan."

"About time. We deserve to be in power, not that Hokage. We're stronger, yet are only the police force?! Ha!"

"Be quiet you fool!"

"Why? Even if someone finds out, how are they going to stop us?"

"Surprise is an element we want on our side."

"Yes, and your wife wants nothing to do with this."

"She won't cause any trouble, now go back to your jobs." Itachi heard everyone leaving and rushed into his room. He lay down and ran over this new information.

"_They're planning to attack the village, and they wish for Riz and I to help? So, she doesn't know about it. What will happen to Sasuke? Should I wait and inform Riz? Or should I go see the Hokage now?"_ He glared at the ceiling before sighing and closing his eyes, letting sleep take him.

"_I'll see how Riz reacts first."_

* * *

The trio reached the gates and passed through them without incident, as long as you don't count the wary looks shot at the two shinobi. Michiko continued to follow them to the Hokage's tower. They went up and knocked, entering after hearing a 'come in'.

"Ah, you're back. How did it go?"

"Shiroshi is dead, along with his subordinates. Their hideout has been destroyed and the girls were saved. They have all been taken to Waterfall except for one. She requested to come here and we believe she could be of use."

"Really? How so?" He studied Michiko.

"I believe she would make for a good shinobi and a teacher. Her name is Michiko." The Hokage kept looking at her for a while longer before he smiled. Instantly the tension was gone from the room.

"Well, after so much praise, I can't very well refuse. Show her to the academy and then you two are dismissed. Perhaps you can work out whatever's bothering you both. Half the village is on edge just from your bad energy." He waved them off and went back to reading reports. They left the building and showed Michiko to the academy where someone else took her around and got her into a class. Riz started home after that. She was halfway there when Kashi appeared in front of her. She flipped over him and continued as if nothing had happened. She scowled when he grabbed her arm, twisting it behind her.

"Let go of me."

"No."

"Now Kashi, before you get hurt." He didn't answer, instead he spun her around. He took in the spinning sharingan before he yanked his mask down and kissed her. She was motionless for a moment before she pulled away, glaring at him.

"What the hell Hatake?" He winced.

"I'm sorry for upsetting you, but-"

"But nothing. You were being an asshole. Her suggestion was nothing more than that, a suggestion, you didn't need to get so defensive. She was only trying to help, and she knows that we can travel at night without it bothering us that much. And how would you be depending solely on me? You can travel at night yourself. Having the sharingan doesn't make it so I'm some super girl that is just so useful and precious that I get to do all the work, and have to be protected!" She glared at him, shaking slightly. He blinked at her outburst and reached out for her arm. She pulled her arm away and glared. He sighed and grabbed her hand, kissing it.

"I'm sorry Riz, I really am." He mumbled around her hand and looked up, and apologetic smile on his face, "And I'm sorry I'm an emotional retard." She couldn't help but smile at that. It was a half smile, but a smile nonetheless.

He smiled back, "Now, why don't we go out to eat?"

"Are you paying?"

"Maa, maybe." She laughed and they started walking.

"Nah, I'll pay this time, but I get to choose where." He shrugged.

"No ramen, we should treat ourselves tonight."

"You mean I should treat you to something that isn't so cheap!" They laughed and headed to the restaurant.

* * *

Itachi woke up that morning by a weight settling at the end of his bed. Instantly, he had jumped up and pressed a kunai to the intruder's throat. When there was no reaction and his eyes had adjusted to the darkness completely, he realized it was his sister. He glared at her.

"You know you shouldn't do that. I could've killed you." She shrugged.

"You didn't. Besides, I if you were going to, I would've moved. Strange how you don't do that when Sasu-chan comes in."

"He crawls into the bed and curls up. He doesn't just sit on the end and wake me up."

"Fine. Do you want me to leave you alone to sleep?"

"No." He sat up and pulled her closer so she was sitting next to him on the bed.

"Are you sure?" He nodded.

"I need to talk to you anyway. Then you'll tell me whatever it is that's been bothering you."

"All right. What do you need?" He cast a quick genjutsu so no one could hear them before talking.

"No one else knows you're here, do they?"

"No."

"I heard father talking to some other clan members…" He trailed off when he saw her slightly shocked look before she bit her lip, a nervous habit.

"You knew."

"It's what I was going to talk to you about."

"Why did you wait?! They could've gone through with their plan while you were gone!" He hissed at her and she glared back, pouting slightly.

"Because I knew they wanted us to help them. They would have to wait for me to come back so they could talk to me and get rid of Kashi."

"Fine. Shall we tell the Hokage tomorrow then?"

"We can't." He raised an eyebrow and she continued, "The entire clan is in on this plan, for the most part, and they're the police force. Meaning they will hear whatever we tell the Hokage, and then they'll have no reason to wait on the attack. The knowledge that we told the Hokage would travel throughout the clan in minutes and they would attack then. Even if they were stopped because they lost the element of surprise, too many people would be killed first, whether innocent or not." He nodded and glared at a wall.

"Then we'll have to stop them ourselves."

"Just how can we do that? It's not like we can talk them out of it. Mother would have done so if it was possible." They sighed and sat there in silence for a while.

"We'll have to kill them." Riz didn't answer, she just sat there and hugged her knees to her chest.

"We won't be able to stay in the village after that. No one will believe the truth, they won't want to."

"We could show them." She shook her head.

"No, that may make it worse. Ita-chan, what about otooto? We can't kill him."

"I know." They were silent again and let the genjutsu fade.

"Can I sleep in here? Too much trouble to go to my room."

"Lay down then." They both curled up under the covers, trying to let sleep take them.

"I'm going to spend the afternoon with Kashi. In the morning, we should do something with Sasu-chan. Perhaps swimming?"

"Yes. That's a good idea." They went silent then and slept, waiting for the morning.

* * *

Riz told Sasuke their plans to go swimming that morning and watched as he ran of to get ready. She chatted with their mother while waiting for him, and when he came back, they left for the lake. Itachi was all ready there.

"Nii-san!" Sasuke jumped him, almost falling into the water.

"Careful otooto."

"Sasu-chan, you can't do that, you hardly know how to swim!" He grinned at them.

"I'd be fine! You're both here, what could happen?" Riz rolled her eyes and pushed him in.

"Hey! Wait! Help!"

"Try to swim Sasu-chan." Sasuke flailed around some more, sinking under the surface quite a bit. Itachi watched them from the sidelines. When Sasuke fully went under, he came over.

"Is he okay?"

"Shit." She dived in. Itachi watched while she swam deeper until he couldn't see her. She came back up a minute later, Sasuke in tow.

"Apparently he wasn't."

"You could help." Itachi grabbed Sasuke and pulled him out of the water while Riz stayed in and floated there.

"How is he?"

"He'll be fine once he wakes up. Perhaps you should take a look, since you are learning medical jutsu." She flipped around and stood on the water, coming over and checking Sasuke over.

"This should help." She smacked him in the back, making him cough up water and wake up.

"What happened?"

"You started to drown."

"What?!"

"Calm Sasu-chan. Come on, let's teach you to be one of the best swimmers, we'll even get Ita-chan in the water."

"No, you won't." She got Sasuke back in the water, stringing some chakra wire to the other end of the lake and back for Sasuke to hold onto.

"Yes we will. Come on Ita-chan, what's so bad about getting wet?" She walked over to him and grabbed his arm, "What else is there to do? It's our last chance." He closed his eyes and sighed before looking over to Sasuke, who was clinging to the wire in the middle of the lake.

"Fine, let's go get him." She smiled and pushed him in, jumping in afterwards. He glared at her before swimming over to Sasuke.

"Foolish otooto, to learn to swim, you need to let go of the wire." Sasuke stuck his tongue out at him and Riz laughed.

"He's right Sasu-chan. Let go now, we're right here. Nothing will happen to you." They continued to help Sasuke swim until it was after noon. They were heading back to shore when they noticed their father standing there.

"Hello father."

"Itachi, I need to speak with you, come along." He turned away and left. Itachi glanced at Riz, who shrugged.

"Here, take Sasu-chan back home as well. I'm supposed to meet Kashi now. I'm probably late."

"Which means you'll be on time." She grinned and waved, grabbing her clothes and disappearing. Itachi turned and headed back, Sasuke following behind him.

* * *

Riz entered the house deep into the night, sneaking in quietly so as to not wake anyone. She wasn't trying her best to stay quiet since it was her house, she just didn't want to wake them up.

"It's late." She froze before turning and smiling.

"Yes. Did I wake you father?" He shook his head and motioned for her to follow.

"Come with me. I need to talk to you."

"Is this about becoming an ANBU…?"

"No." He opened the living room door and had her go in before him. Inside were several other members of the clan. She bowed slightly.

"What's going on? Did something happen?"

"No, but something is going to."

"Riz, how loyal are you to our clan? More so than to the village?"

"What are you talking about? Why would it matter?"

"Within two days, our clan will launch an attack on Konoha. We will put the Uchiha clan as the most powerful clan there is, and finally get the respect we deserve. You will take part in this and aid us in our endeavors."

"What?!" They continued before she could say anything else.

"You do not have a choice in this matter. This is for the clan which you are a part of. Whether you fight with us or against us, this will happen."

"We had thought you would want to help us. Perhaps Hatake would as well? You could talk him into it. Either that, or he is killed in the impending battle. It's your choice." She didn't answer; she only clenched her fists and continued to stare at the ground.

"Choose now Uchiha Riz." She looked up at them without emotion.

"_Damn them all to hell. Never have I disliked being an Uchiha before this moment."_

"If I agree to this, you must promise for some people to not get hurt."

"This all depends on whom."

"Hatake, Umino, and the Kyuubi vessel."

"We can not promise that Hatake will not get injured. That is up to him. We will not kill him, even if he fights us then." She nodded.

"Sasuke, what will become of him during this battle?"

"He will be protected and kept away, but all Uchihas that can fight, shall."

"Fine." They smiled at her.

"Wise choice. You may go now." Her father led her out.

"You did well Riz." He closed the door behind her, cutting her off from all of them.

"_Of course I did, but… two days isn't much time. …Itachi!"_ She rushed off to his room, finding him already in bed. She got under the covers next to him and hugged her knees to her chest.

"They talked to you."

"Yes. Earlier, that's what father wanted you for?"

"Yes, but something else happened with you. What was it?"

"When they talked to you, did they just say you had a duty to this clan and that was it?"

"Yes. I seem to be more loyal to the clan than you in their eyes. Even if it isn't true."

"It depends. Do they talk of the clan, or of father?" He chuckled and wrapped his arms around her, trying to comfort her. She sighed.

"They want me to get Kashi on their side. They threaten me with his life." She was whispering now, "I told them I would help them as long as he wasn't harmed and they promised for him to live. Other than that, they promised for Naruto and Iruka to be unharmed. Did they tell you when the attack was?"

"No."

"Two days." They were silent for a while, listening to the wind.

"Sasuke has classes tomorrow, and everyone else will be home."

"Now we just have to make sure no one else gets involved, and that we get away." Itachi nodded.

"First, we need some rest, and to act like nothing is wrong in the morning." Riz sighed, got up, and stretched. Well then, I want to see Sasu-chan then. I'm going to bring him in here. It will be like a sleepover."

"Or when he's scared and you're upset." She shrugged.

"Right, so all we would have to do right now is scare him." She disappeared after that and went to get Sasuke. She brought him back in the room and he cuddled into the bed, right in between the two. They stayed like that the rest of the night, getting as much rest as they could. Tomorrow would be hard on them all.

* * *

By the time Sasuke woke up, he was alone in the bed. He vaguely remembered Riz bringing him in there. He looked outside and realized that if he didn't get up now, he would be late. He yanked open the door and ran right into Itachi.

"Aniki?!"

"So, you decided to wake then? Foolish otooto." He poked him and helped him back up, "I was coming to wake you; you're going to be late."

"Thanks Aniki!" Sasuke rushed down so he could have some breakfast before leaving. He greeted Riz, who smiled in return, and rushed out after eating and grabbing his stuff. Riz watched him leave before heading upstairs. As she passed Itachi, she told him her plans.

"I'm going to leave Kashi's birthday present with Guy. I'll be back soon." He nodded and continued down the hall to his room. He needed to get everything ready. Riz changed into her favorite outfit, whether for missions or just walking around, grabbed the gift, and headed out. She traveled by rooftop, searching for the green-clad man. She found him soon enough and dropped down in front of him. She didn't even give him a chance to speak.

"I want you to give this to Kashi in a week for his birthday. I'm pretty sure I'll be away on a mission then, and I want him to get it on time. Can you do this for me?"

"Of course I can! I am always willing to-!"

"Thank you! I have to go now, bye!" She disappeared, leaving the gift with Guy. She climbed into her room moments later.

"Trouble?"

"No, just Guy. Is there a reason you're waiting for me in my room?" Itachi tossed her a bag and her twin short swords. She glared at him.

"Can't we wait longer?"

"Not if we want this to be over with by the time otooto gets back." She sighed and grabbed anything she might need from her room, including the ring Kashi had given back to her during their mission.

"Let's go then." The headed out, deciding to start at the edges of the compound and work their way home, literally. They did their job quickly, efficiently, and most of all, silently. There almost done, only a few more left. Itachi sent Riz to take care of the remaining few, while he went after their parents. They were leaving the kitchen when they saw him.

"Itachi hurry! The clan is being attacked, we need to-" They stopped and took in his appearance and the sharingan spinning in his eyes.

"You- you have done this!"

"Done what father? We are simply just doing what you were going to do to the entire village for your petty dreams of power."

"We?!"

"We." They whipped around only to face another pair of spinning sharingan. Riz turned to Itachi, "Sasu-chan's almost here. We need to finish this now." He nodded and approached their parents. Their father wasn't one to go down without a fight, so he attacked. He was quickly taken down and they were tied up. Sasuke was getting home now, and Itachi had Riz watch over him while he took care of their parents. So now she was following him as he entered the streets and went past houses that normally would be full of life at this time of night. She watched as he grew scared and ran into the house looking for their parents. And she watched as he opened the door to where their parents were. She cursed to herself when he entered. She desperately wanted to hold him and tell him it would be all right, that they did it to save the village, but she couldn't. They had planned to make it so everyone thought Riz was dead as well, and that's how it would stay. She took one look towards the village when she heard Sasuke scream.

"Shimatta!" She tensed as Itachi jumped next to her. She glared at him as they started to run and other people started to come into the complex, responding to Sasuke's scream.

"Why did you do that to him?"

"Quiet."

"Tell me now or I'll attack you."

"And how would that help anything?"

"I'm a good actress."

"Isn't it easier for him to hate me rather than find out that his entire clan was evil? He wouldn't be able to handle it. This way, he has someone to blame for everything, and he'll keep on living because of it."

"So, the hate me to kill me speech was just a way to have him live?" She sighed and they sped up, delving deep into the forest.

"We should finish our plan. They'll believe you came after me…"

"And I need them to believe that you killed me as well." He nodded and she performed a jutsu, creating a life-like doll that looked just like her. She cut her arms and kept racing through the forest, leaving a small trail and getting blood into and on the doll. They stopped for a moment and she made some wounds on the doll before tossing it at Itachi. He quickly 'killed' it and they left it their, along with her swords.

"Shouldn't you leave the ring there too?"

"Only if I stay with it. Besides, in all the commotion, they shouldn't notice."

"You're taking a chance with that. Hatake might."

"Might, but even if he does, and suspects I'm still alive, there is no evidence towards it. Even the most skilled medic wouldn't be able to tell that doll isn't me." He nodded, noting the sadness in her voice, but continued on. They traveled the entire night and part of the next day until they were well enough away from the Fire Country to be safe. After that, they lived and traveled, eventually joining Akatsuki.

* * *

Not too long after the Uchihas had been buried, Guy gave Kashi the gift. It was a kunai, engraved on both sides. After he read them, he left. Only Guy could tell he was crying.

"_An Uchiha doesn't fall so easily, remember that"_ and _"How the wolf falls in love with the ferret"_

* * *

_*** Shimatta means damn**_

_**** Hideo is a name that means 'splendid man'**_

_***** Michiko is a name that means 'beautiful wise child**_

_**

* * *

**_

_**A/N: Well, that's all there is for now! Hope you all enjoyed the Prologue! I know it's long, and future chapters will not be so long. I just couldn't seem to stop typing on it. Finally though, it is done. Maybe now I can get some rest, ne? This story has been plaguing my nights lately.**_

_**If there are any questions at all, do tell me. I would be more than happy to answer them.**_

_**As always, if you want me to write you a story, I do take requests. REVIEW! And that's all I have to say for now! Ja ne!**_


	2. 1:Back to Konoha

_**I'm back people! Aren't you all just so terribly pleased with that? I hope you ALL have reviewed; I truly do enjoy reading them. Even though my brain still hurts from the prologue, I'm continuing on with this story, as well as all my other ones. So, I truly hope you all enjoy this chapter! The Unknown Scribe helped me some. A lot of what the Hokage says is thanks to her help. I'm really bad at writing him. This chapter is dedicated to her because she puts up with me. I do not own the song 'What Do You Want From Me' by Cascada. And I claim nothing on anything even remotely related to McDonalds, but for the stories sake, there is now one in the Naruto world. One, and only one. And it's just a small stand. All these disclaimers go for the rest of the story, just in case they need to be. I know there's no relevance in this chapter, but you'll just have to deal with it.**_

_**Our story begins almost four years later.**_

* * *

_**  
**_

Flashback

* * *

Outside Konoha:

"Are you sure about this?"

"If I wasn't sure, I wouldn't be doing this."

"Lie."

"You're not much fun to talk to anymore." He merely raised an eyebrow, still looking out over Konoha. They had been there for most of the day, planning their next move. Finally, she got up and stretched, taking off the black and red cloak that she had been forced to wear these past few years.

"You don't have to go back. It will be difficult to keep your cover."

"I don't care. It's almost been four years Ita-chan. I miss Konoha and everything about it."

"You miss otooto and Kashi." She looked at him, blue-black eyes staring into red ones, and smiled slightly.

"Yes, I do. Although, I do have a question. Are you even able to not use the sharingan anymore?"

"Hn."

"You're acting like Sasu-chan does now."

"And you would know this how?"

"I'm a very good spy." Itachi kept silent once again, but stood anyway.

"Now?"

"Now." They raced off, heading for the path they knew would be taken by some shinobi on their way back to Konoha. They stopped in a fairly open place, one where everything can be seen, but people can easily hide at the same time.

"Ready?"

"Yes. Go." Itachi let out a small sighed and attacked her. He made sure she would lose a fairly good amount of blood, and knocked her out. Her job was to make it seem like she fought back well. His job done, Itachi left, leaving no evidence that she had ever been with the Akatsuki.

* * *

Their mission completed, a pair of ANBU was heading back to the village. Reaching a clearing, they decided to take a quick rest before they started again. When they stopped moving, they realized there was something wrong in the clearing. They looked around, hearing and seeing nothing out of the ordinary. They did a quick check of the area. They were finishing up when they found her. They quickly made sure she wasn't dead, or really close and decided to take her back to the village to get checked over.

* * *

Riz woke up to white. She groaned and closed her eyes again. They shot open a moment later and she nearly jumped out of the bed, only to flop back down, clutching her side.

"_Damn him. Broke my ribs. What is that? Payback?"_ She scowled and looked around the room. There was nothing to indicate things had gone as planned and she wasn't in some different village. She closed her eyes again and waited for someone to come in. A nurse walked in a while later to find her awake and staring at the ceiling.

"Ah, good, you're awake. You've been asleep for an entire day. If you hadn't been found by our shinobi, you probably would've died. You are very lucky." Riz merely frowned at the ceiling. When there was no response, the nurse continued, "Can you talk? Do you need anything? How are you feeling?"

"No, I'm fine." She nodded and checked a chart.

"It seems you have three fractured ribs, multiple cuts and bruises, as well as a large loss of blood. I'll be back with some food and then you can rest some more. After that, we'll have to ask you some questions." The nurse left and Riz glared at the window, watching a familiar face appear there.

"It seems everything is going well."

"It seems like you went overboard in the attack." He smirked.

"More convincing."

"Sure. You should go."

"I'll make sure everything works out."

"I can handle myself."

"But you won't." She didn't answer and soon felt his presence fade. The nurse came back in soon after that and made her eat. She picked up the tray and headed towards the door.

"Someone will be in here soon to talk with you."

"Any chance I could get healed first?"

"Sorry, but since you're not from here, we need to be sure your not against us first so you don't run off." She left and Riz sat back, analyzing her injuries. She sighed and began to meditate, figuring it would be the best way to rest and waste the time given to her. Her eyes shot open just as someone was about to wake her. She grabbed their arm, stopping them and almost throwing them across the room. They stayed calm and she looked up at someone she vaguely remembered.

"Awake then. I have some questions for you. You don't have to move, just answer them." She nodded, remembering who this was.

"_Ibiki… They're having him interrogate me. Let's see how this works out for him."_ Her face remained blank as he began.

"Name?"

"Atsura."

"Age?"

"About 19."

"About?"

"Today is not my birthday, so, yes, about."

"How did you get injured?"

"I was attacked."

"By?"

"… I don't know."

"Could you describe them? Was it a shinobi?"

"I believe they were, but no, I can't describe them."

"No headband?"

"Not visible."

"Where are you from?"

"Nowhere."

"Secrets will not help you."

"There is no secret. Travelers with no actual home raised me. I learned to be a ninja and did small jobs to stay alive."

"You're a ninja?"

"Yes."

"A ninja for hire then."

"Yes."

"Were you on a job when you were attacked?"

"No."

"Have you ever had a job to harm any other shinobi?"

"Yes, when my employers were in trouble or needed protection."

"Any shinobi from The Village Hidden in the Leaves?"

"… Not that I can remember."

"Do you have any intentions at all for harming said village?"

"No." He nodded.

"You do understand that if you have lied, we will find out and you will be immediately arrested and killed."

"I understand." He nodded and left the room. Riz rolled her eyes and listened to Ibiki talk to someone down the hall, and then footsteps heading towards her room. The door open and her eyes widened slightly. The Hokage walked up to her.

"How are you feeling?"

"Fine."

"You seem to have caused quite a stir. Two of our ANBU found you not too far from here. I'm not sure if you know, but you're in the Konoha Hospital." Riz nodded and kept silent, figuring out what she should say to him.

"I heard that you're a shinobi."

"Yes."

"And you're a ninja for hire without any ties to anyone? What happened to your family?"

"My real family, I don't know. Those that raised me were killed."

"By?"

"Some rogue ninja a while back."

"I see. Well, you should get some rest, a nurse will be in soon to check on you." He began to walk away.

"Sir?"

"Hm?"

"Is it at all possible for me to stay in this village?"

"Why?"

"I'm sick of not having a home. I could be useful as well."

"As a Konoha shinobi?"

"Yes, if I may." He smiled and continued to leave.

"We'll see how you do when you're healed." She stared at the closed door.

"_It worked. I'm in. Let's see, I have about fifteen minutes until the nurse comes in."_

"Too easy."

"I doubt they believe everything. I'll be interrogated later. Probably put in a genjutsu."

"Too bad you suck at genjutsu."

"Was that an actual joke I heard?"

"Hn." Riz rolled her eyes.

"Now that everything is working out, you need to leave."

"If I don't?"

"You'll ruin everything."

"Fine."

"What? No goodbye?" Itachi gave her a rare smile.

"Good luck. I'll be back."

"Not real soon I hope." He didn't answer, already gone, but she knew he heard her. She waited a few more minutes for the nurse to arrive and heal her ribs. Once that was done, she asked to leave.

"I'm sorry, you're not allowed to leave."

"Can I go outside then?"

"I can't make that decision, I'm sorry."

"Fine." She lay back down, allowing herself some rest. She woke to someone opening the door. Sitting up sharply, she watched as the door opened, revealing a jounin. She stopped breathing for a moment. Having a jounin sent to get her wasn't the part that most surprised her. It was Kakashi. She made sure not to let anything show on her face.

"Who are you?"

"Can you walk?"

"You didn't answer my question."

"Neither have you." She glared at him.

"I can walk."

"Good, follow me." She resisted the urge to smack him or scream and followed him down the halls and out of the hospital.

"Where are we going?"

"See the Hokage." He pulled out an orange book and she had to resist the impulse to snatch it away from him.

"What are you reading?" He ignored her and she grabbed the book from him, looking at the page he was reading. Her eyes widened as he grabbed it back.

"Porn?! You're reading porn?!" He continued to read as she tried to get the images out of her head.

"_He hasn't changed much. I wonder…"_

"Should you really be reading that? What if your girlfriend sees you? If you have one at all."

"Nope."

"No, she won't see you, or no, you don't have one?"

"Don't have one."

"Are you gay?" He stopped and stared at her incredulously. She smiled.

"I'll take that as a 'no'. Have you ever had one then?"

"Why are you asking me all of this?"

"I'm trying to make conversation. It's the easiest topic." He rolled his eyes and went back to his book.

"Hey! You didn't answer me. Have you?"

"Yes."

"But you don't now. So, you two broke up then. Why?" He gave her a bored look.

"She died." She let some shock show on her face,

"Oh. I'm sorry." He shrugged and led her into the Hokage tower, showing her to a door off to the side.

"In there. Bye." He disappeared.

"_He doesn't seem very happy with me. But, I don't know whether or not to be happy that he hasn't been dating."_ She sighed, _"He should have. Get his mind off things. He would probably be happier."_ She stretched and opened the door, entering a room with nothing but a chair in the middle and someone hidden by the shadows. She stopped just inside the door and heard it close behind her.

"Sit down." As soon as she was seated, the man stepped forward. Her head tilted as she tried to figure out who it was.

"Who are you?"

"My name is of no importance, and I need to ask you a few questions. You will answer honestly and fully." She simply smiled at him innocently.

"_Too bad he won't tell me his name. I wonder if I know him? Oh well, I can't wait to see if he believes me, not to mention the genjutsu."_ He began to ask her the basic questions.

"Name?"

"Atsura."

"Full name."

"Lunare Atsura."

"Age?"

"About 19."

"About?"

"I haven't counted up to the minute."

"Birthplace?"

"No idea."

"Family?"

"None."

"We have plenty of ways to find the truth, and none of them end well for you."

"I would be worried if I had been lying." He did a few quick hand signs and she felt the genjutsu hit her. She preformed her own hand sign that he couldn't see, and waited.

"What is your purpose of being here?"

"I have none. I was brought here."

"Why were you attacked?"

"I was attacked by a group of rogue ninja that I had attacked."

"Why did you attack them?"

"They were harming some children, and I stopped them."

"Why were you so near here?"

"I had been traveling when I met them. When they all attacked me, I ran. I ended up near here without knowing it."

"You are a ninja for hire?"

"Yes."

"Have you ever had any employers that had wished anything against this village or the people within our walls?"

"I don't believe so. Unless the shinobi from here were not wearing any indication they were from here, then I have not attacked them."

"Have you ever killed another shinobi?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"In order to protect either my employers, myself, or someone getting attacked."

"Have you ever turned against your employers?"

"Yes." She felt the genjutsu get suddenly stronger.

"For money?"

"No. They went against me first. I did what I had to." The genjutsu faded and she was sitting in the dim room again. The interrogator was gone. She leaned back slightly and stared at the ceiling, waiting for someone to either come get her or ask something else. She looked towards the door when someone opened it. She followed him out of the room and down the hall to the Hokage's office.

"You never told me your name.

"So?"

"Are you going to?"

"No."

"Why? Do you already hate me that much?" He ignored her and she felt both anger and sadness boil inside her, followed by guilt.

"_This is my fault. If I had stayed in the village then he wouldn't have such a need to be so cold to people. But, if I had stayed, I would have to deal with why I didn't stop Itachi, Sasuke's distress, and having to act distressed and angry as well. I wouldn't have been able to pull that off."_ She sighed, making Kakashi glance at her before turning back to his book. He led her into the office and left, leaving her alone with the Third.

"Welcome."

"Yo." He raised an eyebrow, but continued anyway.

"You wish to become a ninja of this village, correct?"

"I told you that before."

"What would you think your ninja rank to be?"

"I'm not sure."

"Above Genin level perhaps?"

"That depends on your standards for Genin."

"If you wish to stay in this village, you will be under constant surveillance for two months. You will be tested in your abilities by an ANBU and may eventually go on missions with others to test your loyalty and teamwork." She nodded slightly and continues to smile.

"_Great... How in hell am I going to be tested? That's going to be the hardest damn part!"_

"I have found you a temporary apartment for you to stay until you are cleared. After that, you may either stay there, or move. There is an ANBU waiting for you outside."

"Thanks" She held up her hand in parting and left the office. The Hokage watched the closed door for a moment longer.

"_She reminds me of both Kakashi, and Uchiha Riz…"_

She left the building to find an ANBU waiting.

"Yo!"

"Lunare Atsura, come with me."

"Nice to meet you too… What's your name?"

"… You do not need to know."

"I want to. That can be the same thing." He began to walk away.

"Follow me." She caught up with him easily, looking around the village as if amazed and trying to memorize it.

"You never told me your name." He ignored her and she stopped. He glanced back at her.

"Come."

"Are you going to talk to me at all? I'm trying to make a conversation, maybe get to know a few people, and you're making it very difficult." She glared at him and he felt a shiver run down his spine, but dismissed it.

"Hurry up."

"I'm not moving until you answer me."

Five minutes, and plenty of odd looks later…

"I cannot tell you my name. It would put those I care about in danger, as well as myself."

"Well, at least you talked. I still don't see the point. Have I put myself in danger by letting you know who I am?"

"You are not acting as two people."

"And you are? You're still the same person, inside the same body. You still have the same past and everything."

"You don't get it." He begins to walk away again.

"You're right. I don't." He could hear a tinge of sadness in her voice, but still feel the glare directed at him. She followed him in silence until they reached an apartment complex. He suppressed a sigh when she started on her questions again.

"I'm going to stay here then? Nice. Anyway, if I ever see you again will you say hello? Or do something to let me know it's you? You could be my, first, friend. How about it?" She stopped following him again, making his sigh escape.

"What?"

"Promise me."

"Fine, let's go." She smiled and followed him up the stairs. He showed her her new place and disappeared. She glared at the spot and entered the apartment, looking around.

"_Let's see, bathroom, bed, kitchen, and a living area. Nice. And there's already food here. Look's like I'm set."_ She noticed a note on the kitchen table. She picked it up in annoyance.

"_Not very secure… yet."_ She opened the letter and saw that it told her who she was supposed to meet with every morning and where she is to go the next day to get tested. She stared at the name of who was to be her 'babysitter'.

"Makoto*? Who is that?" She shrugged and threw the letter away. She began to safe-proof her new home. Once she was satisfied with that, she explored the place. Scoping out places of weakness and strong points. Generally making sure she knew it and that it was safe. She went and looked through the kitchen, finding something to eat. After she finished her meal, she decided to lie down. There was nothing better to do really. Especially while being watched.

Outside, Kakashi watched with a bored expression.

"_Nothing suspicious about her now."_ Still, he had orders to stay there for the night, just to make sure. He sighed and pulled out his book.

"_This is going to be a long night…"_ Riz smiled as she watched Kakashi sigh and take out his book.

"_How fun, he'll never know I left. Now I'm actually glad for the Akatsuki. I may never have pulled this off so well if it hadn't been for Sasori."_ She grinned and jumped away, heading towards the Uchiha manor. She made it there without any trouble, and slipped inside. She noted all the dust, and after going through every room, realized that Sasuke hadn't been living there for quite some time. Itachi's room had been sealed shut, Sasuke's was left alone, and her room was clean… wait, clean?

"_Why is my room clean?" _She entered it and saw that nothing had been taken or moved, but things had been added. On her bed, there were some small gifts and flowers. The flowers were fresh, but she could tell the gifts had been there for some time. Looking closer, she could see that some were birthday presents every year since she had supposedly died, and there were even a few old Valentine's gifts. She stared at them with a mixture of sadness, fear, and curiosity on her face. Hesitantly, she reached for one of the packages when she heard something. Someone was heading towards her. She froze before disappearing through the window. A girl entered the room and looked around quickly, making sure nothing was disturbed and she was alone. She took a dead flower from the bed and replaced it with a new one before turning around and leaving, trailing her finger over a desk as she went. She smiled when there was no dust and disappeared through the door. Riz followed her silently, listening to her talk to herself.

"Well, it looks like I don't have to clean it, someone else did again. At least now there are fresh flowers." She stopped just inside the door, glancing back and smiling slightly before leaving.

"Thanks again Riz. I only wish you were still alive." Riz dropped down and stared at the door, trying to remember who the girl was. She titled her head slightly before sighing and heading back to her apartment.

She switched places with the doll and pretended to wake up and go to the bathroom. She took a hot shower and cleared her head. Her eyes shot open.

"Michiko?" She stared at the ceiling and turned the water off, smiling.

"_Looks like she's doing well. Interesting, she misses me still. It's been close to four years now."_ She shrugged it off and went back into the bedroom.

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_**That's all for now loves! Gods, this has made me so mad, yet so happy!!! I had to have 50 pages done before I could even upload this, thanks to The Unknown Scribe, who should really consider changing her pen name to just Unknown Scribe. As promised, the chapters are not all going to be as long as the prologue! As fun as that was, my creativity flow has stopped flowing smoothly and likes to play shit with me. Thanks again to Unknown Scribe! The next few chapters will also be dedicated to her unless otherwise posted.**_

_**Thanks for reading! Reviews are greatly appreciated, even if you hate the story, I would like to know, and perhaps I could write something to fit with your tastes more!**_

_**Ja ne!**_


	3. 2:Time for a Dance

_The Unknown Scribe needs to change her penname to just Unknown Scribe! Okay, so here's the next chapter! I know this chapter is shorter, but I didn't want to make it too long, so I had to stop where I did, I'm sorry ok?! Anyway, I hope you all have reviewed (and maybe told others about the story)! Enjoy!_

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She opened the window and looked out at Kakashi.

"Are you just going to sit there all night long?" She heard a thump and knew he had fallen from the tree branch, probably catching himself on another. She smiled and motioned for him to come closer.

"You might as well come talk to me. I can't very well sleep."

"You were earlier."

"Not much. Come on in. I won't bite you." She sat down on the bed and waited, when he didn't come in, she asked him again.

"Why won't you come in? I'm sure it'll be easier to watch me from in here anyway." His head appeared in the window.

"I doubt I'm supposed to."

"Then I won't tell anyone. And I won't hold it against you in any way." She smiled at him again and he shrugged, climbing through the window.

"You're the same person from earlier. You never did tell me your name."

"Hatake Kakashi." She smiled again.

"About time. I'm sure you all ready know mine, so…"

"Actually, I don't." She studied him.

"You were assigned to watch me tonight, yet you haven't heard my name?"

"Nope." She sighed.

"That is so weird. Atsura, Lunare Atsura." He froze for a second before regaining his composure, but she noticed it. He made sure to simply look bored.

"_Atsura? How?! No, stop it. It's been four years since then, it couldn't be. It's not like no one else could possibly be named Atsura, right? She's dead, along with the rest of her clan…"_ Still unconvinced, Kakashi dismissed his thoughts and listened to what she had been saying.

"Hm?"

"For a shinobi, you are terrible at listening. I was saying that I found it stupid to have someone watch me sleep. It can't be very eventful, and I have already stated that I have nothing against this village. So what's the problem?"

"We need to make sure. And I don't have anything else to do."

"Did sleep ever cross your mind?" He tilted his head slightly and smiled, making her laugh.

"I guess not. Anyway, it's your turn to talk."

"Turn?"

"Yes. I started the conversation and everything, so now you have to keep it going."

"And if I don't?"

"I smack you if you take out a book, but fine. I'll keep asking questions. Have you ever been married? Or are you now?"

"No."

"No girlfriend? There's no one you like?"

"Why do you keep asking about that?"

"Curiosity."

"No answer."

"Touchy subject. How long ago did she die? I doubt she would've wanted you to wallow in self-pity or guilt, whatever it is." He glared at her.

"It's none of your business. You didn't even know her." He left, preferring the tree rather than her now. She sighed and went back to the window and leaned out.

"Look, I'm sorry. I wasn't trying to make you mad or remember anything painful. I was just trying to… trying to talk. I'm bored, and perhaps a tad bit lonely. Okay? Come back in."

"No." She sighed again and hopped out of the window, landing beside him.

"Then I'll just have to come out here." He glared at her and grabbed her arm, dragging her back into the room. Once she was successfully in there he tried to leave again, only to have her catch his arm and yank him into the room, shutting the window after him. She sat on the bed and smiled.

"I am sorry about upsetting you, but I'm not beyond using force. Come on, either talk to me, or we could play a game."

"No."

"You are _so_ much fun to talk to. Game it is. Now, what game? Any ideas?"

"I'm not playing a game."

"How about dancing?"

"No!" She laughed at his expression and grabbed his hand, jumping off the bed.

"Come on. There's nothing else to do."

"Th-there's no music." She paused.

"Well, either you can go get some, or I get to sing and you dance along to whatever I choose."

"I'm not supposed to leave you here alone, and I don't want to dance."

"Too bad. Now, what song…" She slowly smiled and then began to sing.

"_Let's see if he remembers this song. I hope he does."_

"So there you are,

Again you're circling all around,

If you could only touch me now,

Strangers from the past,

Don't hesitate,

Now we're standing face to face,

If heaven is the only place,

Would you take my hand?

'Just tell me what do you want from me,

This is love in the first degree,

Tell me why, every time I feel your eyes all over me.

Tell me what do you want from me,

Are you mad enough to see,

That it's hard to cross the line,

Come on now, set me free.'

What do you want from me.

Get closer now,

Softly whisper in my ear,

Please take me away from here,

Away from all my tears.

It's not too late,

Now we're standing face to face,

And heaven is the only place,

Will you understand?

'Just tell me what do you want from me,

This is love in the first degree,

Tell me why, every time I feel your eyes all over me.

Tell me what do you want from me,

Are you mad enough to see,

That it's hard to cross the line,

Come on now, set me free.'

And I know, If you give me this feeling,

I'll be there to hold you tight.

Cuz I'd show your love is a hero,

We will run, run out of sight.

What do you want?

What do you want from me,

This is love in the first degree,

Tell me why every time I feel your eyes all over me…

'What you want?'" the last part was whispered and they stopped.

"See? That wasn't so bad." He didn't answer her, instead opting to stare at her oddly. She shifted and laughed lightly.

"Ano, is there something wrong? Don't say you fell in love with me after just one little dance." He continued staring at her, eventually his eye widened and he reached out to trace her jaw line. She suppressed a shiver and watched him step back and take out a kunai. He raised it to his arm and was about to stab himself when she grabbed him.

"What are you doing?!"

"Waking myself up."

"You're not dreaming! Why do you think that?!"

"Because it has to be. You can't be-" He struggled to control himself and she smiled slightly.

"Can't be what Kashi?" He froze and looked at her, eye wide.

"… Riz?" She bit her lip slightly.

"_Damn, should I admit it? This could destroy me entire plan…"_ She looked at him again, _"Screw the plan."_ She stepped up to him and put a hand on his should to whisper in his ear.

"If you tell, I'll be forced to kill you." He shivered slightly at the threat in her voice and she kissed him on the cheek, pulling back and smiling.

"I missed you Kashi…"

"But, how? You were killed."

"Don't believe everything you see. Did you honestly think I had been killed? After all, an Uchiha doesn't fall that easily." She hugged him and felt him hesitantly hug her back.

"Where have you been then? Have you been tracking Itachi this whole time? And why not just tell everyone that it's you. Wait! I saw your body!" She sighed.

"It was a puppet, a trick to make everyone think I had died."

"Why?" She sighed again and pulled away, sitting on the bed.

"Because I couldn't feel bad about the clan's death."

"How could you not? Your brother murdered them all!"

"Except for Sasu-chan."

"So?"

"Shimatta! Kashi, use your head! Why would I not be able to feel bad and have been gone these past four years and make sure everyone believed me dead?!" She was shaking and glaring at him. He paused before his eye widened and he took out a kunai, ready to attack her at a moments notice.

"You helped." Her shoulders slumped and she looked at him sadly.

"Yes, I did. And now you hate me for it. So, what are you going to do? Kill me? I'll let you if that's what you want." He didn't move.

"Tell me the truth."

"The truth of what? I did help Ita-chan to kill our clan, I admitted to that. What more do you need?"

"Why did you?"

"Why are you asking?"

"I don't want to kill you. Please, just tell me why you would do such a thing."

"Because I had to. I did it for Sasu-chan, the Village, and you. My clan was not all it was cracked up to be. But, before I tell you everything, you have to promise not to tell anyone else."

"Fine."

"Swear on your life and on the Village."

"… I swear." She sighed.

"My clan was plotting against the village. The night after we returned from our mission they tried to get me involved. If Ita-chan and I hadn't all ready planned to stop them, then I would have helped them. They threatened me with your life, so I made a deal with them. You, Umino Iruka, and Uzumaki Naruto were not to be harmed. They agreed to everyone but you, unless I could get you on their side, but they would not kill you. I had known for a few weeks before then, but I waited for a sign that they were close to their attack, and for Ita-chan to find out. I couldn't tell the Hokage because the clan would've found out too soon and begin their plan, not to mention, I doubt I would've been believed. The police turning against the village? It simply can't happen, right? So I did the only option left to me."

"But why didn't you tell-"

"What if I had? Would you have been able to keep quiet? I doubt it, but I did leave you some clues. Your birthday present for example." She smiled slightly at him, still wary about him attacking her. Her head tilted when he lowered the kunai.

"We need to tell the Hokage."

"No. I worked too hard to get in here to be captured." She held up a hand to stop his protest and continued, "Even if I had a good cause for murdering my clan, I still helped murder them without telling the Hokage beforehand and not all of them were part of the plot. In addition, I have now lied to them all and entered the village under false pretenses without any type of permission. I had also left the village, knowing full well any and all consequences. Besides, you promised not to tell. You had better be able to keep a secret, unless you want me to erase some memories?" He shook his head and sighed, putting the kunai away and sitting next to her, his head in his hands.

"No… Why did you come back?" He looked up in time to see her pained expression before there was once more no emotion.

"I wanted to see how Sasu-chan was doing. I wanted to see the village again, and not just from spying." She looked at him, "I missed you as well. Besides, I like Konoha. I really did not enjoy having to turn my back on the village."

"Where have you been then?"

"With Ita-chan."

"The Akatsuki?!"

"Not so loud Kashi!" He stared at her.

"Are you spying for them?"

"No."

"Are you lying?"

"Why would I lie to you Kashi?"

"In order to get information."

"I'm not a spy Kashi. Personally, I don't like the Akatsuki. The whole organization is strange, and they don't like me much either. They haven't since Ita-chan and I joined."

"Then why did they let you?"

"Because of Ita-chan. He wouldn't join if I couldn't stay there. I stayed with him almost constantly. I even went on missions with him."

"What else do you know about them?"

"I'm not telling you the inner working of the Akatsuki. Maybe one day, but not now. Sorry love. Get some sleep now. I won't be going anywhere out of this apartment. I promise."

"Why do you want me to sleep so badly now?"

"Because you don't trust Ita-chan." Kashi's eye widened and he glared at Itachi, whom had just shown up at the window.

"What are you doing here?" He was in full attack mode again, and Riz sighed, pushing him back onto the bed before looking over at Itachi as he came into the room.

"I told you not to keep checking in on me. You're going to give Kashi a heart attack."

"You told him then?"

"No, I'm talking to you normally because I want him to pass out or attack us both, whichever comes first." She rolled her eyes, "What did you want anyway."

"Say hello?"

"Kisame with you?"

"Yes." Riz sighed and went to the window to say hello to the shark-man.

"So, what mission are you on?"

"None."

"Liar. Let me guess, you need to make sure I haven't told of the inner workings of the Akatsuki? I haven't, so you can go now."

"What? You don't want to see us that badly?"

"Get out of the window Kisame." She kicked him and turned to glare at Itachi, "You need to leave. This isn't a party."

"My imooto is in a room alone with him, " He pointed to Kashi, "and I'm not supposed to be concerned?"

"I think that's the most you've said at once in quite a while now Ita-chan. Good job. And no, you're not. I can easily take care of myself, now leave."

"Hn." He disappeared, as well as Kisame. She looked over to Kashi and sighed. She poked him and he grabbed her arm, twisting it behind her back.

"You are a spy."

"No, I'm not. In case you hadn't noticed, Ita-chan can spy by himself, and they were here to make sure that I hadn't become a sort of spy for Konoha and told of the Akatsuki. Honestly Kashi, if I was a spy, do you think I would allow myself to be watched over so much?" He didn't let her go, so she got away herself. Kashi ended up in the same position she had been in a second ago. He froze and she laughed lightly.

"Careful Kashi, you can't beat me."

"Really? I will if I have to."

"And if there is such a time, I'll let you, but trying to kill me because you think I'm a spy doesn't count." She kissed his back and released him. He spun around and faced her again, kunai ready. He froze again when he found a kunai pressed against his throat before he had completed the turn.

"I've surpassed Ita-chan by now love; don't even try." He glared at her and she dropped the kunai.

"How?"

"That's your kunai, don't forget it. It's getting close to morning now, so I'm going to take a shower. You had best be going, and don't forget your promise." She left him standing there. His lip twitched into half a smile and he left to go back to the tree, acting as if he'd been there all night. He stayed there until someone said he could go, asking if anything had happened.

"How'd it go?"

"Fine."

"Anything?"

"… No." Riz smiled to herself as she silently shut the window and got ready to go meet Makoto.

* * *

_Well, that's all for now! I hope you all liked it, and The Unknown Scribe changes her penname. Perhaps I should threaten her? It might make all of you tell her to change it too! I'm not going to update anymore, or even write anymore until she changes it! Okay, well, have fun! Reviews are appreciated!_


	4. 3:Fight For A Team!

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_**

Okay! I'm finally back on! Hope everyone has reviewed and I'm sorry it took me so long! But I now have me own laptop, so I'll be able to update again! Unless I lose a story or college gets in the way! Hope you all enjoy!

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She left the apartment building as the sun was rising and waved at the man standing a few feet away. He came up to her.

"Happy? I kept my promise." She blinked before grinning.

"Seriously? That's wonderful!"

"Sure. Come on, you need to be tested."

"Please say you're actually going to talk to me now. Do you have a girlfriend?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because."

"Because why?"

"Why do you want to know?"

"Curious."

"Stop being curious then." He led her to the chuunin exam stadium where the Hokage, an ANBU, a jounin, and a chuunin were waiting. She looked around at them in surprise.

"What's going on?"

"We're going to test your skills. You will fight each of these shinobi, starting with the chuunin, and we will determine what skill level you're at. I will be watching from up there." He pointed and she nodded.

"Do I get any weapons?"

"No, this will be hand-to-hand combat, but you may use any jutsu you can. They will not hold back, so you shouldn't either. Whenever you're ready." Everyone one but the chuunin and Makoto left. She tilted her head and looked at him.

"I get to judge." She nodded and looked back at the chuunin.

"What's your name?"

"Why?"

"Curious."

"Iruka, Umino Iruka."

"Lunare Atsura, nice to meet you. Whenever you're ready then?" He nodded and Makoto raised an arm.

"Begin." Iruka attacker her faster than expected, but she dodged it easily anyway. She spun around too fast to see and hit him on the back of the neck, knocking him out. Makoto raised his arm.

"Match over. The winner, Lunare Atsura." She knelt by Iruka and turned him over. Makoto came over and picked him up.

"He'll be fine. You're against the jounin now." He walked away with Iruka.

"Begin."

"Ah! You now have the honor of going up against me! Might Guy!"

"I'm sure you know me now, so?"

"All right, let's go!" He took off almost as fast as she can be, shocking her and landing a hit.

"_Damn, I should have remembered. He trains with weights and his best point is speed. Although, this could be a good thing. I can't show them I'm too strong, right?"_ She dodged his next attack., getting far enough away to perform a summoning. Without even thinking about it, she summoned three snow leopards. They quickly leap at Guy, distracting him long enough for Riz to drop kick him. He rolled to get away, and ended up next to the leopard, all of which instantly attacked him. Riz joined in, spinning on her hands and kicking him, sending him flying across the stadium to land in a heap, covered in scratches and bite marks. Makoto stared for a moment before raising his hand again.

"Match over. The winner, Lunare Atsura." Riz went over to make sure he was okay and saw him shakily get up first. He grinned and gave her a thumbs up before leaving. The ANBU appeared and Riz stood across from him.

"If you're both ready, begin!" The ANBU instantly started a jutsu, performing the hand signs at a fast pace. Riz blinked, but otherwise let nothing show on her face.

"_A jutsu battle? Of course, a test of skills is not only in speed and taijutsu, but also genjutsu and ninjutsu."_ She performed her own jutsu, faster than he was. No one even saw her move her hand, and she knew the ANBU was shocked when he was suddenly surrounded by a whirlwind of flower petals. He tried to get out, but they surrounded him completely, encompassing him within. He started his own jutsu and Riz moved her hand slightly, causing them to start shooting out at him. This both injured and distracted him. It worked for a while until he preformed a fire jutsu, obliterating the petals. Riz took a step back and jumped out of the way of the flames, letting herself get singed in the process. She made it seem like a bigger injury than it was, kneeling down and rubbing the spot as if it was terribly painful. She smirked inwardly and got up slowly.

"_This may be more difficult then I thought. I need to lose this battle."_ She ran at him and he preformed another jutsu, making her jump out of the way again as multiple weapons were shot at her. She got hit a couple of times by some shuriken. Pulling them out, she did another jutsu, slower than the first. He dodged it and rushed her, making her jump back. She let a bit of panic and weariness show on her face. Her back hit a wall and she cursed before being sent flying to the side. She got up and was struck with another jutsu. After a minute of getting pelting with punches and shuriken while surrounded by darkness, she fell to one knee, panting.

"I… give up." The attacks stopped and she looked up at the Hokage.

"You did well." She smirked inwardly and looked around to see the ANBU talking to Makoto. In the other direction, she could see Kakashi.

"_Don't look so amused Kashi. You know I have to do this."_ She looked back at the Hokage.

"Do you need a medic?" Her eyes widened and she rapidly shook her head.

"No, I'm okay. I'll be just fine. Just need to rest." He nodded, clearly amused.

"Well, you can go. I'll see you tomorrow in my office." She nodded and he walked off. Makoto came up to her and smiled slightly.

"Good job. What did the Hokage say to you?"

"That I can go now and he'll see me tomorrow." She stood and smiled at him, "I'm kind of tired and hungry. Can we go back to the apartment?"

"Yes. This way. Come on." She followed him back to the apartment and invited him in.

"What do you mean no?"

"I'm not supposed to go into your apartment with you."

"Why not? You can't keep watch on me from out here, and I don't need protection. I won't try and leave either, which is also something you wouldn't know about from staying out here. Besides, I invited you in." He sighed and smiled slightly at her, clearly amused.

"You just don't give up, do you?" She smiled and tilted her head slightly.

"Nope! Come on, I can make something to eat, and I think there's tea somewhere I could make. Unless you would like something else?" He shook his head.

"It doesn't matter to me." She smiled and they entered the apartment. She found some tea and began that. She began to rummage through the pantry, trying to find something that she could make quickly. She finally decided on a stir-fry of sorts. She used ramen noodles, and whatever else she thought could go in it. By the time she was done with it, the tea was ready, and the entire apartment smelled good. The food didn't look very good, but she didn't care. She only smiled when Makoto looked at it oddly.

"Don't worry, it should taste just fine." To prove her point, she began eating it herself. She sighed when he still wouldn't.

"It's not poisoned. I doubt that would make a good impression on the village of me." He laughed and took a tentative bite of the food, blinking in surprise.

"Not bad."

"I'm glad you like it. You said you didn't have a girlfriend, right?"

"Right."

"You never did tell me why. Is it because there's no one you like? Or does no one like you? Or maybe it's because you're too busy?" She rolled her eyes when his head hit the table in exasperation.

"Why do you want to know so badly? Does my personal life interest you that much?"

"Depends, do you have anything else to talk about?"

"No."

"Then yes, it really does." He sighed, but smiled slightly anyway.

"I don't have much time for that, and no, there's no one I like."

"No one at all? What about me? Do you like me?" He looked up in shock to see her smile.

"What?!"

She laughed, "Do you like me at all? Maybe not as a girlfriend at all, but perhaps a friend?"

"I just met you."

"Wrong! You met me yesterday!" He sighed.

"I still don't know you well."

"I don't know you either, but I'll consider you a friend. I can tell you're not a bad person at all anyway." She smiled again and finished her meal before getting up to put the dishes away. Makoto finished his meal as well and brought in the dishes. She took them from him and they said goodnight. He went back outside to keep watch, while she went to bed. She lay there for a while until she heard the window open. She smiled and looked over to see a very pissed-off Kakashi.

"Something wrong?" He glared at her and pulled her close to him, pressing her to his body.

"You shouldn't be here. I know it's hard to believe, but I'm being watched. By a really nice man named Makoto, do you know him?" He growled and pushed her back onto the bed. She smirked and got up, wrapping her arms around him.

"Are you jealous Kashi? Were you watching everything I did? Were you stalking me and what you saw made you jealous?" She kissed his cheek and pulled away, laughing.

"No."

"Liar." He didn't answer, but shrugged and reopened the window. She watched him leave.

"If he keeps coming here, someone's going to get suspicious." She smiled and stretched out on the bed

xXx

By the time Makoto was knocking on her door, she had made a breakfast and set the table. She opened the door and invited him in to eat.

"You were planning this, weren't you?"

"Perhaps. I doubt you've eaten since you keep watch all night. By the way, when do you sleep?"

"I will later today, while you are talking with the Hokage."

"I almost forgot about that. I wonder what he's going to say…" They finished and he walked her to the Hokage's mansion, letting her go in the office alone. She entered and was greeted with a smile from the Hokage as he motioned for her to sit. She glanced around after the doors shut before he started talking.

"After watching you yesterday, I have decided to make you a chuunin. After a month or so, you may take the jounin exam if you so wish. You may go on some missions, and will learn anything you may need to know within this month. You still will need some lessons, and may start that today. Understood?"

"Yes."

"Dismissed then." She nodded and left, meeting up with Kakashi instead of Makoto.

"What are you doing here?"

"Giving Makoto a break."

"He is sleeping then?"

"Yes."

"That's good, he needed it."

"What did the Hokage say?"

"I'm a chuunin now, that means I'm ranked higher than you now, right?" She grinned.

"No."

"Bad mood much? I have to start lessons today, and can take on some missions. I can also take the jounin exam after a month."

"Are you going to?"

"I don't know. I might like being a chuunin. I wasn't one for very long before, after all." He rolled his eye.

"Chuunin are scary."

"How so?"

"Iruka hasn't stayed a child."

"I would certainly hope not! Seriously though, is he really that bad?"

"You have no idea."

"Am I supposed to? Anyway, where are we going?"

"To meet with my team."

"You have a genin team? That's hilarious! I can imagine it now…" He took out his book when she began to laugh, having it instantly ripped out of his hands.

"Give that back!"

"No. So, where are you supposed to meet them?"

"Training grounds."

"And you're late, again."

"Actually, no. I might even be early this time."

"Really?! That's amazing Kakashi. The only time you had ever been on time was when you were meeting me, what changed?"

"Nothing, old habit from being near you I guess."

"If we weren't out in public and it would be suspicious, I would hug you right now. Although, I can't help but think you're kind of being mean to them by being early."

"You would rather me be late?"

"No, I don't want to hear a lame excuse." He chuckled as they neared the training grounds. There was no one there.

"Just how early are you?"

"Ten minutes at most."

"Who's on your team anyway?"

"Well, there's Naruto and Haruno Sakura, do you know her?"

"I've heard the name before, but that's all. Who else?"

"Sasuke." Kakashi made a point to not look at her after he said this.

"_Sasuke?! _You brought me with you and _Sasuke's_ going to be here? What is wrong with you?!"

"Is there something wrong _Atsura_?"

"You are _so_ dead." He smiled at her and snatched his book back. Riz glared and quickly burned it before walking to a tree to sit under, leaving an appalled Kakashi behind. He glared at her and she smirked.

"I know where you keep the rest." Kakashi paled and turned away from her to where Sakura had just appeared. She wasn't looking at them, but when she did, Riz began to laugh.

"KAKASHI-SENSEI?! What are you doing here?! You're early!" Kakashi shrugged and leaned against a tree to wait for the rest of the team. Sakura just stared at her teacher before turning around when she heard her name.

"Sakura! Hey!" She rolled her eyes and turned away again.

"How are you Saku-? Kakashi-sensei?! Why are you here? You're _always_ late, dattebayo! And you're not reading your book! I get it! You're not really Kakashi-sensei, are you?! Who are you?" Naruto glared at Kakashi and Riz couldn't help but laugh, catching the two genin's attention.

"Who are you?"

"Sorry. I'm Atsura. And you?"

"Haruno Sakura. I've never seen you here before."

"I'm new."

"She's a chuunin. Atsura, this is Uzumaki Naruto."

"And I'm going to be Hokage one day, dattebayo! So, you're new? And all ready a chuunin?! That's super cool! How old are you? Where are you from? Do you like being a shinobi? Why did you come to Konoha? And-" Naruto was effectively shut up by A hand over his mouth and Riz laughing.

"Do you ever shut up? Let's see, I'm about 19 and I came to Konoha to become a better ninja."

"Cool! How come you're a chuunin all ready?"

"You would have to ask the Hokage that. He made me one."

"Naruto, if you're done, can you go get Sasuke? He's late."

"It's your fault for being early, dattebayo!"

"Go get him." Naruto sighed and walked off, grumbling.

"I could get him Kakashi-sensei!"

"You can go with him then." Sakura smiled and took off. As soon as she passed him, Naruto began running too. Riz laughed as Kakashi sat next to her.

"Such a lively team for such a lazy person. You look bored. Is it because I burned your porn?"

"Maa… I'm fine." Riz smirked.

"Well, no one's here anymore. Tell me what you've been up to."

"Nothing much. Left ANBU and became a jounin not too long after you left."

"That's it? Four years and that's all you do?" He shrugged.

"Someone's coming." She scowled at him and looked over to see only one person.

"Is that Sasuke?! Where's Naruto and Sakura?"

"Calm down. They probably missed each other. They'll be back soon enough."

"You are completely missing the point here."

"You're early." Kakashi shrugged.

"You're late. I had to send Naruto and Sakura to find you."

"Hn." He looked over at Riz.

"Sasuke, this is Atsura. Atsura, Uchiha Sasuke."

"Hello."

"Hn." She glared at him.

"It's customary to say hello." He ignored her and she glared at Kakashi instead.

"Just say hello Sasuke. She's new here and a higher rank. Be nice." He turned his head away.

"Hi."

"You need to talk more Sasuke. Or should I call you Sasuke-chan?" His head whipped back at her and he gave her his harshest glare. She only smiled at him.

"Well? Which is it? You must talk Sasuke-_chan_. You have to learn to speak in sentences." His glare intensified. She continued to smile sweetly.

"Sasuke-_chan_. Do you know how to speak? I'm waiting."

"Stop that."

"Stop what Sasuke-_chan_? You need to be more specific." His eye twitched.

"Stop calling me that."

"Calling you what Sasuke-chan? I'm using your name? Would you rather me call you Baby Sasuke-chan?"

"Just Sasuke. No chan or baby."

"Awww, but it was just so much fun. That still wasn't a very good sentence, but it's better than nothing I suppose. Oh! I see Naruto and Sakura!"

"OI! Sasuke! When did you get here? We were looking everywhere for you, dattebayo!"

"Hello Sasuke-kun!"

"Hn."

"That didn't sound like a complete sentence or even a hello Sasuke-_chan_."

"Hi."

"Whoa! Sasuke, did you actually say hi?!"

"Shut up dobe." Riz smacked him the same time Naruto yelled at him.

"Teme!" Riz glared at the blond.

"Do I have to hit you too?" She caught Sasuke's foot as he tried to kick her and quickly pinned him to the tree, right beside Kakashi.

"I did say she was a higher rank than you."

"Shut up." Riz smiled at him and sat back down as Kakashi got up and let Sasuke down.

"Any chance you could not attack my team?"

"There's a chance of everything."

"Of course. How likely?"

"Ask the quiet one."

"Not very then." He turned to his team, "Well, it's just training today, so get to it."

"Kakashi! You should be training them! Not just having them train alone! You get to it!" He sighed.

"Fine. We'll be working on chakra control and standing on water. Come on." Riz got up and followed him, Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke all looking at her strangely.

"She must be really scary to make Kakashi-sensei do that." Sakura and Sasuke nodded before they all followed the two.

xXx

20 minutes into the training, Sakura had all ready mastered it. Sasuke was doing well, but Naruto was, well, it's Naruto. An hour later and Naruto could stand more. Another hour and he had it down. Sasuke had it half an hour earlier. Riz watched them in silence, only speaking to congratulate Sakura on getting it so quickly. She didn't even make fun of Kakashi when Naruto almost knocked him over. She smiled at him when he sat beside her.

"Done for the day Kakashi?"

"Yes."

"You don't seem too happy. I bet I can make you laugh though." He shrugged.

"Try it." She smiled and stretched before diving into the water. Kakashi watched as Sakura was suddenly pulled under, followed quickly by Naruto. He wondered why they didn't come back up, but decided to wait and see.

By now, Riz had done a water jutsu so Sakura and Naruto could stay under for quite a long time. She motioned for them to be still as she swam over to Sasuke. She circled him for a while, leaving small hints that she, or something, was there. She smirked when he began to walk faster towards the shore. When he was almost there, she grabbed his ankle and yanked him under, undoing the water jutsu at the same time. By the time he looked around, she was gone. He resurfaced to find both her and Kakashi laughing. He glared at them, but otherwise said nothing. Their training ended, and Riz followed Kakashi back to her apartment, inviting him in. He didn't even hesitate and accepted her offer, telling her that unless he or Makoto had a mission, he was going to be her guard every other day.

* * *

**_Sorry it's short! Again, The Unknown Scribe needs to lose the The. Review please!_**

* * *


	5. 4:New Team, Same Girl

_**You all must be so happy to see me update after, well, a long time! Hehe, I need to start getting on a schedule with this thing, I have a lot written, I'm just too lazy to post them sometimes. ^^' Oh well, on with the story!**_

_**

* * *

**_

A month passed and she had completed all of her lessons and gone on a few missions. Once with Kakashi and his team. When she had started her lessons, she had been surprised to find that Iruka was teaching her. It turned out that they got along extremely well, and had both teased Kakashi and gone out to eat ramen with Naruto a couple of times. She was meeting Kakashi today and he was going to escort her to the Hokage's. For once, she was nervous. She may be watched over for another month, or finally be free of watch. Not to mention she wouldn't mind becoming a jounin again. So far, her missions had been pretty uneventful.

They arrived at the Hokage mansion quickly and were let into his office just as fast.

"Good morning Atsura, Kakashi."

"Yo." The Hokage seemed amused, but made no other comment when they both said that simultaneously.

"You're dismissed Kakashi." He nodded and left, leaving Riz there alone.

"Well, you have been doing well this month I see. Iruka said that you did excellent in your lessons and the missions that you went on, including the ones with Kakashi and his team, were all successful. There have been no complaints about you either."

"Thank you sir."

"I have decided to loosen surveillance on you, so Makoto will no longer be watching over you. You will rotate between the jounin and their teams instead. You will stay with each for a week or less, depending on the jounin. Now, I believe I said you could take the jounin exam if you wished. Do you want to?"

"I- I would like to take the exam after staying with these teams. If that's all right of course."

"That's fine. The exams can take their toll and are very difficult though, so don't take them too lightly. Anyway, you'll stay with Kakashi's team for about two more days, and then he'll take you to meet the next one. Dismissed."

"Thank you." She left, grabbing Kakashi's arm and nearly dragging him down the stairs with her.

"Hurry up. I'm sure you all ready know the plan." He pulled her to a stop.

"Yes, I do. I was planning on having you meet all the jounin-sensei today in order to save time later. You can meet the teams when you join them." She sighed.

"Fine. Who am I meeting?"

"First? Kurenai. Then Guy and Asuma."

"I've never heard of Kurenai. Well, lead on." Kakashi grinned.

"What? No lunch first?"

* * *

After a lunch that he all but forced her into making, they ended up outside of Kurenai's house. They knocked and the door opened to reveal a surprised young woman.

"Kakashi? What're you doing here? And who's this?"

"This is Atsura. She's the new chuunin."

"Oh really? Well, come in and tell me why you're here. I'll make some tea." They followed her into the house and to the kitchen. Riz looked about the house, noting how it seemed… cozy. It was a nice place and simply, yet extravagantly decorated. Completely unlike what she had thought it would be, and almost the opposite of Kakashi's nearly empty apartment. A cup of tea was set in front of her and she returned her attention to Kurenai.

"So, why are you both here?" Kakashi shrugged and pulled out his book, knowing Riz wouldn't snatch it in front of Kurenai. He wasn't expecting Kurenai to do it for her though.

"Hey!"

"I asked you a question, and you shouldn't be reading this anyway." Kakashi glared at her and grabbed his book back, tucking it away.

"The Hokage did tell you about Atsura joining teams, right?"

"Yes, but that won't happen for at least two more days."

"I was having her meet you beforehand. We're going to go see Guy and Asuma next."

"Oh, well, it was nice to meet you then. I'll see you in two days."

"Thank you, for the tea as well. Bye!"

"See you." They left and Riz followed Kakashi to the training grounds.

"So, I'm meeting Guy now?"

"You sound so pleased." He took his book back out, only to have it snatched and thrown away.

"I'm warning you now. Do that again, and I will destroy your entire collection and perhaps torture you as well."

"You don't consider that torture?!"

"Comparatively? No." He paled and continued walking. She entered the ground and saw green. Someone was actually wearing bright green spandex in public.

"That's his normal outfit, so calm down."

"And that's supposed to calm me?" He almost smiled when Guy turned and saw them.

"AHA! Kakashi! My eternal rival! Are you up for another battle today? A thousand laps around the village maybe?" Kakashi sighed.

"No thanks. I'm introducing Atsura really quick, that's all."

"Is that so? Well! Nice to meet you youthful Atsura! I can see the fire of youth burns brightly in you! Perhaps you would like to train with me? AH! We still need a rematch from when we were testing your skills! How about it?"

"No thanks."

"What?! Such Unyouthfulness! How could you say such a thing?!" The two quickly left, leaving the ranting green man behind.

They found Asuma at a dango stand eating lunch before going to meet with his team.

"Hey Asuma."

"Hey Kakashi. Done training your team for the day?"

"Day off."

"Who's this?"

"Atsura, I'm having her meet you before she joins your team."

"I'm surprised Kakashi. You're actually getting a head start on something. I heard you were early meeting you team a couple of times too. You been sick?"

"Nope, ran out of excuses. Don't worry, I'll be back to being late soon." They continued to chat lightly for another minute before Riz got bored and yanked on Kakashi's hair.

"Are you quite through? Nice to meet you Asuma." She proceeded to drag the jounin off. They ended up back at her apartment where the spent the rest of the day. The next day was spent training with his team and watching Riz continue to aggravate Sasuke.

"Hmmm, I wonder when he's going to finally snap and attack her."

* * *

The next morning, Riz got up and went to meet Kakashi as usual. Unlike most days though, Kakashi was all ready in her apartment, lounging on the couch with two cups of ramen.

"Brought you breakfast."

"I can see that. Is there some special occasion?"

"Well, I won't really see you officially for at least a week, so…" He shrugged. She smiled and gave his forehead an upside-down kiss before grabbing her ramen and beginning to eat it.

"I'm supposed to stay with Kurenai's team now, right?"

"Yes."

"Kashi, you really need to cheer up. I haven't even removed your mask and can see the scowl. Come on, at the very least you should eat." He shrugged again and sat up to eat. He removed the mask and didn't say anything else. Riz rolled her eyes at his obvious pouting and went to put her stuff away. By the time she came back, Kashi was done and had the mask back up.

"Take the damned thing off so I can say goodbye properly." He raised a brow, but made to move to remove the mask. She growled and jumped him, pinning him to the couch.

"That is quite enough pouting Kashi. Gods, you're making me feel like I'm scolding Sasu-chan." With that, she pulled down the mask and quickly kissed him before getting off of him.

"Now, I think it's time you took me to see Kurenai."

* * *

They met up with Kurenai just a little bit late because Kakashi had failed to ask her where they were meeting beforehand. Riz looked over the group as they were introduced.

"This is Kiba and Akamaru."

"Hey!"

"Woof!"

"Shino."

"Hello."

"And Hinata."

"H-hello."

"Yo!" Kurenai raised her brow.

"_How extremely like Kakashi she is, and I hardly even know her."_

"Okay Kakashi, you can leave now. We'll be fine." He shrugged.

"Kay." He disappeared and Kurenai began to explain what they were going to do for the day.

"It's just training to day, so I'm going to pair you all off with each other. We have a mission in a few days, so we need to be ready. Okay?"

"Got it!"

"Yes."

"Y-yes."

"What are the pairs?"

"Well, Kiba and Shino, and if you don't mind, I would like to pair you with Hinata. Kiba, you'll be on defense, Atsura, you will be too. The only way you should be holding back is if the move is deadly. I'll be watching you all from over here. All right? Begin!"

"S-sensei? A-are you s-sure about this?"

"Yes Hinata, now no holding back! She's a chuunin and should be able to handle it." Hinata nodded and got into position. Riz just waited with her head tilted, an old habit. Hinata stuttered an apology before attacking her. Riz dodged slightly so she was just out of the way, but she didn't figure in the girl's flexibility and had to jump away. They continued on like that for a while. By that time, Riz had figured out that Hinata was a Hyuuga, and wasn't that bad, excluding the constant apologizing of course.

Kurenai stopped them after an hour, praising some places, reprimanded others, while helping with some points.

"All together, you did well Hinata. I'm glad. You too Atsura, you're fast. I'm going to pair you against Kiba now, still on defense. Hinata, you'll be on defense against Shino. Hurry up now and begin!" Riz faced the dog boy and smiled.

"What's his name again?"

"Akamaru, and you'd better not think we're going to go easy on you!"

"I was hoping not. It wouldn't be very good training otherwise. Begin." Kiba started right off the bat and attacked her straight on. When she dodged he followed with his apparent favorite: Fang-over-Fang. She dodged it and smirked when they followed her while in the air. It was also dodged and she landed on the ground behind them. He kept on attacking her until Kurenai called the time.

"Okay! That's enough for today! Kiba, come over here." He went over there and received a lecture about strategy.

"S-sensei? Shouldn't Atsura h-have a t-turn?"

"Well, if you want to that's fine. I want all of you to defend against her attacks. Atsura, nothing drastic, I heard that you would good, okay?"

"If you're sure it's fine for me to be attacking them."

"It's just training, not an actual battle. It should be fine." Riz nodded and got ready.

"How long?"

"Thirty minutes. Go!" Riz attacked, making sure not to actually hurt them, but rather to make them stay on defense and dodge her. By the time Kurenai stopped them, the three genin were tired, she hadn't let up on them once, using her speed to keep them on guard. They were dismissed for the day and Riz headed back to her apartment. She sighed when she sensed someone in there and made sure to hit him with the door on her way in.

"Ow! What was that for?!"

"For waiting here to ambush me."

"I wasn't going to ambush you."

"There are many different types of ambush Kashi. Can you do me a favor?"

"That depends."

"I need to go see Ita-chan. Can you help make sure I don't get caught?"

"Why do you need to see _him_?"

"Kashi, he's not well. I need to heal him soon or he could die. I really don't want my brother to die."

"You have another brother."

"That thinks I'm dead and will hate me if he finds otherwise! Kashi please!"

"…Fine. How long has he been ill?"

"About two years. Lung disease. Unfortunately, I'm not skilled enough to heal him entirely so I have to heal him every now and then so it doesn't get worse. Kashi, he's not a bad person. I made him promise to not come back into the village to see me, so I have to go to him."

"I said fine. What do you need me to do?"

"Make it seem like I'm still here if you can."

"Of course I can." She hugged him.

"Thank you Kashi." A quick kiss through the mask and she was gone. He sighed and did the jutsu.

* * *

She made it out of the village and deep into the forest without any trouble.

"_Now to find him…"_ She activated her sharingan for the first time in over a month and took off, following whatever trail she could fine. She found Kisame's sooner and followed it until she saw the blood.

"_Damn it! I shouldn't have made him promise not to come find me in the village!"_ She went faster and made it to their camp in record time. Kisame glanced at her when she entered the clearing and pointed to the tent. She nodded and went in quickly, going straight over to where Itachi lay sleeping. She nudged him and he looked up at her.

"You shouldn't be here."

"Yes I should. Ita-chan, you need healing."

"I'll be fine. You don't want someone to find out you're not in the apartment."

"Kashi's covering for me. Sit up." He did as instructed, but continued arguing with her.

"He may change his mind."

"Are you insulting my boyfriend again Ita-chan?"

"You're together again?"

"Not officially. No one else knows." She began healing him, "Turn." He sighed and turned around.

"You need to leave now. If anyone other than Kisame found out you came here-" He froze when someone entered the tent. Looking back, he saw Konan standing there. He cursed himself and Kisame, who was right behind her. She handed Itachi a scroll and turned to Riz.

"Hello Riz."

"Hello Paper-chan. I'll be gone soon. Don't worry, I have no intentions of getting caught." Konan smiled and shook her head before leaving.

"You stand corrected Ita-chan. If anyone other than Sushi-chan or Paper-chan saw me I'd be in trouble." She grinned and finished the healing without any more complaints. She gave Itachi a hug before leaving the tent.

"Come get me before it gets that bad. If you can't, send someone or something. Okay Sushi-chan?"

"He should be fine." She got up close to him.

"Sushi-chan, I mean it. If you don't do this, you will find out exactly how cruel I can be." He nodded and she smiled, backing up before waving and disappearing.

* * *

She crawled back through the window and looked around for Kakashi. When she didn't see him, she went around the apartment to find him, eventually ending up in the kitchen.

"I leave, so you decide to raid my apartment?" He waved her off.

"Maa… I covered for you."

"You must have something in return for that?" He shrugged and she took the sandwich away from him.

"Hey!"

"Stop whining, I'm hungry." She tore it in half and gave one to him before going back to her bedroom.

"I'll leave now."

"Bye Kashi."

* * *

Riz met with Kurenai's team the next day in the same spot. She got there at the same time as Kurenai did. Unlike Kakashi, she was never late without a viable excuse.

"Well, now that you're all here, I have some news. We have a mission today. It's a D-rank mission. We need to find and capture Miss Raika's cat. He got away last night and our team was available. Is everyone ready?"

"All right!"

"Yes."

"Y-yes."

"Of course."

"Good. The cat's name is Masaru and he was last seen near the training fields and the forest. He is wearing a small bell and a large blue bow around his neck. Let's go!" They all took off in pairs. Kiba and Shino, Hinata and Riz, while Kurenai went on her own. Hinata spotted Masaru and they took off after it, running into Kiba and Shino. Kiba caught him and was instantly attacked while Akamaru growled at the cat. Riz sighed as the cat took off faster than ever.

"Hey! Get back here!" Riz grabbed Kiba's jacket before he could take off.

"That's not a good idea. This is a _cat_, not a dog. They're opposites. He'll always run away from you and Akamaru."

"Then what are we supposed to do?!"

"Use it to your advantage. Try chasing him to Hinata. Then she'll catch him. Can you handle that?"

"Of course I can! Let's go Shino!" They took off again.

"I wonder if they'll be able to do it."

"Um, is th-this a good i-idea?"

"With Kiba doing it? Probably not. Come on Hinata, let's go find Masaru." She nodded and they took off.

* * *

They met up with Kurenai after an hour had past, Hinata holding Masaru. Kiba looked terrible and exhausted. Both Kiba and Akamaru were making sure to keep their distance from Hinata.

"Good job! Now let's go return him to Miss Raika." Kurenai headed off, but stopped when she heard a yell. She looked back to see Riz holding the cat and Kiba apologizing to a bleeding Hinata.

"I'm sorry Hinata! I was trying not to get too close! Are you okay?"

"I-I'm fine. Th-thank you." Riz rolled her eyes and quickly healed the scratches, not caring if she got close to Kiba with the cat. When she was done healing Hinata, she turned to the cat and glared at it. Masaru instantly stopped scratching her and settled with hissing at Kiba and Akamaru.

Masaru was taken home and given to an ecstatic Miss Raika without further incident. After that they were allowed to leave. Kiba apologized to Hinata again and offered to walk her home. They left, as well as Shino, and Riz was about to head off when Kurenai called her back.

"Atsura, I would like to speak with you for a minute."

"Hn? Okay."

"Where did you learn healing?"

"I don't remember where. I've been able to do so for years."

"No one told me that."

"I must have forgotten to mention it. If you want, I could go and tell the Hokage that I can do some healing. I'm not very good at it though."

"No, I'll go and tell him. I have to deliver the mission report anyway."

"Well, if you're sure…"

"I am. Go get some rest and heal those scratches. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Okay. Bye!" She waved and ran off back to her apartment. She was stopped by Kakashi before she was even on her street.

"What's wrong?"

"Where are you going?"

"Back to my apartment of course."

"Where'd you get the scratches?"

"A cat."

"You're joking."

"Actually, I'm not. We had a mission for retrieving Miss Raika's cat. Having Kiba and Akamaru look for a cat wasn't the best idea." He laughed and grabbed her arm, effectively stopping her from leaving.

"Where do you think you're going?"

"I all ready told you!"

"I go out of my way to find you, and you won't even talk to me?"

"I might be more willing to listen if you weren't reading porn." He glanced at her and put the book away.

"Now are you going to listen Atsura?"

"Sure. What do you need?" He glanced around quickly.

"Can we talk somewhere else?"

"What's wrong with here?"

"Humor me." She sighed.

"All right. Let's go." They headed off by rooftop to the trees near the training grounds. They sat in the middle of a dense group of trees before Riz turned her attention back to Kakashi.

"Well? What did you want?"

"I actually had a question for you." She waited a minute.

"Well? What's the question?"

"Well... Will you go out with me?" She tilted her head and blinked.

"What?"

"Will you go out with me?" He wasn't looking at her.

"You mean officially? So the village can know?"

"Maybe not the entire village."

"Maa… I don't know. There are so many cute guys here…" His head whipped around and there was a mixture of a glare and shock on his face. It changed to a complete glare when she began to lightly laugh.

"Then don't." She stopped laughing when he stood up to leave.

"What? Hey, wait!" He glanced back at her, anger marring his features, but she could see he was fighting to not just run away from her.

"Kashi, I was only joking. I didn't mean that. It's true, there are many cute guys here, but…" She frowned, trying to find the right words. Kakashi smiled and grabbed her arm, pulling her closer to him and embracing her.

"I understand." She sighed and smiled.

"That's good."

"It must be a pain to be as honest as you are." She pulled away.

"And yet, here I am under false pretenses and lying to everyone." He smiled and kissed her forehead. She snuggled into his chest and let her exhaustion from the past few years take over. He shook his head and smiled, picking up the sleeping girl, making sure not to wake her, and heading back to his apartment.

"_Still so light. She'll be staying with me tonight, I can't get into her apartment."_

* * *

_**Hope you liked it! Yet again, The Unknown Scribe needs to drop the The. Hope you all enjoyed! REVIEW!**_


	6. 5:Brothers, Boyfriends, and Dreams

_**The Unknown Scribe needs to lose the The. Also, I'm so sorry for not uploading in so long! I'm going to try to update weekly on this story until you all are caught up with what I have done. For example, you all are only on page 37 after finishing this chapter (not including prologue) and I have approximately 106 pages completed. So, if I don't upload after a week or so, please leave me a message, or even message The Unknown Scribe! She'll get me to do it for all of you! Anyway, Enjoy!**_

* * *

"And they walked off into the sunset to live the rest of their lives in happiness together." Kakashi sighed and switched off the television. He was sleeping on the couch, having given his bed to Riz. He leaned back with a groan.

"Why is there never anything good to watch?!"

"Ever think it's because no one is expected to be watching television at three in the morning?" He shot up and fell off the couch, making Riz smile.

"What are you doing here?!" Her head tilted.

"What do you mean? You brought me here, remember?"

"I know, but why are you awake?"

"Am I not supposed to be?"

"Never mind. Did you just wake up?"

"Yes. I feel bad though, did I take your bed?"

"No, I gave you the bed."

"Well, you're not going to get much sleep out here. Come on, the bed's big enough to fit us both. As long as you don't try to rape me." She smirked and walked back to the bedroom, Kakashi following her.

"Maa, I wouldn't rape you."

"I know, but no perverseness, okay?" He rolled his eye and got into the bed beside her, holding her close to him as they fell asleep.

* * *

Kakashi woke up to an empty bed. He sat up and looked around. When he was sure nothing was out of place, he walked to the kitchen, wondering if last night had been a dream.

"_Of course it was a dream. Riz wouldn't show any weakness, not even around me anymore…"_ He smiled at the sight before him. Breakfast was laid out on the table on front of him, a note beside it. He grinned and picked up the note.

"_Sorry Kashi, but I had to leave, Kurenai said to meet early today. Enjoy the food. Unless you've changes your tastes in the past four to five years, you should like it. Of course, I could have gotten worse at cooking too. Love you, Atsura."_ Kakashi looked over the table and grinned.

"Why would I change my tastes?" He pocketed the note and began to eat. He smiled as he thought about what his team was going to do when he showed up late this time.

* * *

It was another training day with Kurenai. She had told them that they were going to have a mission sometime during the week, and until then they were going to make sure they were as prepared as possible. Riz was hiding in order to see how long it takes the team to find her. She stretched and closed her eyes, remembering when she first met the Akatsuki.

* * *

"Ita-chan, where are we?"

"The Akatsuki Headquarters."

"Okay. _Why_ are we here?" He didn't answer her and she glared into the dark room, eventually focusing on the eyes that appeared.

"So, you wish to join?"

"Yes."

"Both of you."

"Yes."

"What makes you think I will allow you to join? This is an evil organization, and you need to stop making faces at me!" Itachi gave a sideways glare at Riz and she smirked, but stopped making faces regardless.

"What makes you think you can become a part of the Akatsuki? What have you done to be defined as evil?"

"Murdered my entire clan."

"And you girl?"

"I am not going to answer if your tone suggests sexist."

"Riz." She sighed.

"Fine. I helped him, and even if you don't like me, I'll stay with him."

"And if I say you cannot?"

"I'll ignore you and do so anyway. I am staying with my brother."

"There will be a test of strength. If you pass, you will be allowed to stay Uchiha." Riz tilted her head.

"When did you learn our name?" She never got an answer.

* * *

"Found you!" She narrowly avoided being tackled by Kiba, and pinned him to the tree.

"You need to be quieter." She blinked when he grinned and she felt her chakra being drained. She looked around to find insects on her and Shino standing a few feet away.

"Smart." She spun around and ran off, removing the insects as she went. She was stopped by Hinata.

"I'm assuming all of you had planned this out."

"Y-you won't get p-past me."

"Okay." She sat down in front of the surprised girl and waited for the others to catch up.

"You got her Hinata! Hey, why are you just sitting there?"

"The main goal was to find me, and you did that."  
"We were supposed to capture you as well."

"Bug-chan, I am captured, can't you see that? You have me surrounded." Kurenai appeared behind them.

"Okay, it's time to stop. Oh, did you capture her?"

"W-well…"

"Looks like it, doesn't it?" Riz smiled and got up.

"We can go now?"

"Well, yes."

"That's good. I'm supposed to meet someone." She disappeared and Kurenai sent the others home, wondering whom she was supposed to meet.

* * *

Riz walked into the restaurant to find Kakashi waiting for her. She smiled.

"You're early."

"You're late."

"Coming from you, that's not so bad."

"Why were you late?"

"It took them longer than expected to find me."

"They actually captured you?"

"In a sense. I said they did." He shrugged.

"Come on, there's already have a table waiting for us." She smiled and followed the jounin to a secluded table in the back.

"Is there a problem with people seeing me with you? I thought you said it's not a problem for people to know we're dating."

"No. I like this table."

"Of course you do."

"It has the best view."

"If I was expecting to be attacked, I may care more." She sat down and looked at the menu, ignoring Kakashi. He sighed and figured out what he was going to get.

"They don't have ramen!" Riz heard a 'thump' and looked up to see Kakashi's head on the table.

"Ano, what's wrong?"

"Of course they don't have ramen. I can't believe you're still addicted to it."

"I am not addicted to it. I haven't had ramen in a long time! I hardly ever got it while traveling. Ita-chan doesn't like ramen very much, and it was hard to get." She went back to looking at the menu.

A few minutes later and a waitress came over.

"What can I get you two to drink?" Kakashi looked at Riz.

"Sake. For both of us."

"Are you sure? Aren't you underage?"

"No."

"I need to be sure of that."

"We're both Shinobi, and she's 19 anyway." He glared at her when she hesitated and she left in a hurry to get their drinks.

"What are you going to eat? And by the way, who's paying?" He waved her off and didn't answer.

"Kashi! You can't invite me out and then make me pay! That's it, change the drinks to water and if anything, you can get the cheapest thing on the menu!" He laughed and she glared at him.

"If I knew I would get such a wonderful reaction I would have said something sooner. I was just joking, I'm paying and you can get whatever you want."

"I can't decide whether you're being nice, or I should leave right now."

"I would rather you think I'm being nice. I won't do something like that again tonight."

"Keyword being tonight. You never answered me as to what you're getting."

"Shark fin soup. It sounded interesting." He tilted his head when she laughed.

"Sorry. I've been traveling with a shark-man Kashi. You should have seen his face the first time I cooked a shark." Kakashi smiled.

"What about you then?"

"Steak."

"Are you choosing that because it's one of the cheapest, or because you actually want it?"

"I like steak. It also comes with fish, mushrooms, and potatoes."

"You must be hungry."

"What? You're not going to share it? I want to taste your soup too." He grinned as the waitress came over with the sake, setting them down.

"What can I get for you?"

"I'll have the shark fin soup."

"Okay, and you?"

"Steak and fish please."

"How would you like the steak?"

"Medium-rare, closer to rare than anything else." The waitress looked at her oddly, but smiled anyway.

"Okay, I'll get your order put in right away." She walked off and Riz looked back at Kakashi, accepting the cup he handed her.

"When did you start drinking?"

"I'll give you three guesses, and only the first one counts."

"Right after you left, of course." She smiled sadly.

"Yes. Anyway, what did you do today?"

"I'm assuming you can't think of anything to talk about."

"I can't really do relationship questions, now can I?"

"I guess not."

"So, how has Naruto been? He hasn't had much trouble, has he?"

"He's been fine. His life hasn't been the best, as expected, but he seems happy enough."

"Seems? Kashi…"

"I know. I've been checking up on him. He's fine. People left him alone after you had finally snapped at them for it, remember?"

"Ano? Oh! Gods, I still remember the reprimand from that! That was terrible." She glared at him, "How can you laugh at that?!"

"You should be happy about it. He had a better life than he had been after that." She groaned.

"You have no idea how much trouble I had gotten into for that."

"Maa, probably not, but it was entertaining to see. Not to mention your brother's face when he caught you."

"Don't remind me. He was so pissed at me."

"I wish I could've seen that."

"… Be careful what you wish for Kashi."

"Why is that?" Riz smirked and the food came, the waitress smiling at them and hoping they like it. Kakashi told her not to come over, or let anyone else, unless they waved her over. Once she left, they resumed talking.

"You're coming over tonight, right?"

"Did you want me to?"

"I do now." She reached over and pulled his mask down before beginning to eat. He watched her for a moment before beginning his own meal, swatting her chopsticks away when she tried to steal some of his food. She let him take some of her food, smirking when he avoided her steak.

"Is there something wrong Kashi?"

"I will never understand how you eat that."

"You should see me on missions."

"I have."

"Not in recent years." She managed to steal some of his soup, plopping it in her mouth before he could complain and going back to her meal. She finished before him, and just as he was about to put some more in his mouth, she waved at the waitress. He was glaring at her, mask up, by the time she came over.

"Did you need something?"

"We ran out of sake, could we get some more?"

"Of course, I'll be right back." She left and Riz acted surprised at the glare she was receiving.

"What's wrong?"

"I wasn't done.'

"So? Oh! The mask! I forgot!"

"Liar." He made a point to not look at her when the waitress came back with the alcohol.

"Thank you."

"No problem. When you're done, just wave me over again." She left and Kashi began to finish his meal, watching Riz pour herself some more sake.

"You're going to make yourself sick."

"I am not."

"You're going to get drunk, and have a hangover in the morning, and you have to meet with Kurenai again." She rolled her eyes and poured another glass, filling up Kakashi's as well.

"I'm done."

"I'm not! I want to finish off this bottle."

"Haven't you had enough? We've had two bottles all ready!" Kakashi blinked at her slightly blurry form as he started to feel the effects of downing so much alcohol in a short amount of time.

"I'll be fine! Don't worry!" She grinned, her face flushed, and finished off the third bottle.

"Let's go now." Riz giggled.

"Okay, let's go!" They paid quickly and left, walking slower than normal. Kakashi watched Riz closely, not knowing how well she could handle alcohol.

"Why are you looking at me like that, Kash?"

"Kash?"

"Yep! Kash, Kashi, Kakashi!" She giggled. He watched her twirl about for a bit before reaching out and grabbing her,

"That's enough." She swayed.

"Kashi?"

"Hm?"

"I think I drank too much." She giggled again and he rolled his eye.

"I could've told you that."

"… Kashi?"

"Yes?"

"You know what else?" He sighed.

"What?"

"I'm tired, dizzy, and drunk as hell."

"And?"

"G'night!" She giggled, fell against him, and passed out. He managed to catch her in time, sighing and running a hand through his hair.

"Staying over again, I guess."

He gave her the bed again, but lay beside her this time. He watched her for a moment before drifting off, wondering what she was dreaming about.

* * *

"Ita-chan?"

"Hn?"

"What will happen if they don't let me stay?"

"I thought you weren't giving them a choice."

"I don't want to, but I don't want to cause you more trouble." He glanced up at her and smiled, something he would only do around her now. He sighed at her slightly depressed look and pulled her into a hug.

"You are no trouble to me. It's fine to be trouble for them." She frowned, but hugged him back.

"If you're sure." He let go as the door opened and a blue-haired woman as well as a blue-skinned man walked in.

"Uchiha Itachi?"

"Yes?"

"Congratulations, you are now a member of Akatsuki. I'll be your partner. Follow me to our room." They both followed them and the girl showed the room to them, grabbing Riz when she tried to go in. Riz glared at her before nearly being dragged to the next room. She looked back to see Itachi's door close.

"What are you doing?!"

"This'll be your room." Riz tilted her head and was led inside.

"… What's your name?"

"Konan."

"Konan? Why is there a paper flower in your hair?" She didn't answer.

"Well, does everyone call you Konan? I bet they call you something like Flower-chan, am I right?" Konan shrugged.

"You're not very talkative Paper-chan."

"… Paper-chan?" Riz smiled.

"You like it? You like paper, and use it a lot, right?" She nodded.

"I thought so. You probably know my name all ready. To be honest, I didn't think I would be allowed to stay, much less given a room."

"You didn't give Leader a choice. You said you would stay anyway."

"And here I thought I would have to fight for it."

"You should thank your brother, he also made sure you would be allowed to stay."

"Really? I'll make sure to do that then. So, do you use paper jutsu as well?"

"Yes."

"Can you teach me?"

"Why?"

"It interests me." Konan smiled slightly and nodded.

"Sure."

* * *

Riz blinked up at the ceiling without a sound. A moment later she realized it was Kashi holding her and she smiled, turning her head. She regretted it instantly.

"Shit!" Kashi shot up at that and looked at her in shock.

"What's wrong?" He looked at her and smirked, "Hangover?"

"Man whore." She didn't even bother to look at his expression, instead pressing her fingers to her temple and doing a simple healing jutsu, instantly relieving her of the hangover.

"That's better. I must've drunk the sake too fast for it to have that much of an effect. What happened last night after we left?"

"Man whore?!"

"Is there a problem Kashi?"

"Yes!" She kissed him.

"Still?" He grumbled out a small yes and she kissed him again.

"Now?" He smirked and pulled her closer.

"Maybe."

"Good. You never answered as to what exactly happened last night."

"I don't think you want to know."

"Kashi!" He laughed.

"I'm kidding. You passed out and I brought you here. That's all." She smacked him and he landed on the floor. He watched as she got up and stretched.

"What time is it?"

"Eight o'clock."

"What?!" I'm going to be late! Do I have any clothes here?"

"No."

"Kashi! I can't be late!" He sighed.

"Fine. How do I get into your apartment?"

"Ceiling. There's a small hole. Hit the first blue button you see. There are no markings on the button. You'll be able to drop into my room then, but don't go anywhere else."

"That's it?!" He groaned and disappeared.

"That's it he says. He had better not try to go anywhere else in the apartment." She shrugged and went to take a shower.

* * *

She got out of the shower at the same time Kashi came back.

"What happened to you? Wait let me guess. You tried to go somewhere other than my bedroom." He glared at her and tossed her a set of clothes.

"Here."

"I did warn you." He ignored her and got all of her stuff ready, setting it out for her while she changed. She came out and grabbed it, kissing him on the cheek before leaving.

"Thanks Kashi." He smiled and went to take a shower, wondering what excuse he should use this time.

* * *

They finished training and Kurenai sent them home, calling Riz back at the last moment.

"Yes?"

"Why were you late today Atsura?"

"Well, because of Kashi."

"Kashi?"

"Kakashi. Sorry. I stayed over at his place last night."

"Stayed over? Why?"

"Because I drank too much and passed out."

"And he just happened to find you and take you to his apartment?"

"No, he was at the restaurant with me."

"Really. Well, you shouldn't be drinking so much, okay?"

"All right. I'll see you tomorrow." Riz took off and went to where Kashi was supposed to be with his team. Her head tilted when he wasn't there. She saw someone in the bushed and went to wake him up. She kicked him in the side.

"Hey!"

"Do you know where Kashi is?"

"Kashi?"

"Kakashi."

"He left a while ago with Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura."

"Do you know where they went?"

"No."

"… Shouldn't you be with your own team right now?" The boy shrugged and closed his eyes again. She smirked and dropped a log on him before walking away to find Kashi.

Two hours later found her sitting at Ramen Ichiraku with a large beef bowl in front of her.

"Atsura! Hey!"

"Naru-chan? What're you doing here?"

"I just got finished with training for the day, dattebayo!"

"Really? Hey, do you know where Kashi is then?"

"You're calling him Kashi now? He doesn't get a chan?"

"Guess not. Do you?"

"No, but I'll help you look for him if you want!"

"No, that's all right. Thanks anyway. How about Sasu-chan?"

"He probably went back to the training grounds. He still wants to kill his brother. He's still mad at you for calling him that too."

"Thanks Naru-chan!" She paid and raced off.

* * *

She watched as Sasuke pushed himself to get stronger than ever. She watched as he started to bleed from his muscles being so overworked.

"If you stay any longer, you're going to kill the tree." Her arm swung back and was caught by him.

"He's always like this, isn't he?"

"Yes. It's Itachi's fault." She didn't answer and pulled away, jumping away from him and heading out of the village. She heard him following her, but decided it didn't matter. She got to a small clearing and rounded on him.

"Why are you following me?"

"Why are you leaving?"

"I'm going to check on the oh-so-evil Itachi. You shouldn't come, he may kill you if he's in a bad mood!" Kashi raised his hands.

"I'm sorry Riz. I didn't mean that."

"Being mean to my imooto Kakashi?" He stiffened when he felt a kunai against his throat and glared.

"What do you want _Itachi_?" He spat out the name and Riz looked away before racing farther off. They both watched her go and Itachi put the kunai away.

"You are upsetting her."

"That's none of your business!"

"Yes, it is." Kakashi attacked him.

* * *

After demolishing ten trees to calm down, Riz looked around and smiled. She decided she should go find Kashi and apologize. It wasn't completely his fault that she had blown up like she had after all. She sighed and headed back to where she left them, hoping nothing bad had happened.

* * *

She entered the clearing and groaned at the sight. Kashi was tied upside-down to a tree, with Itachi sitting just a few feet away, his eyes closed. She went over to him first.

"Ita-chan, what happened?"

"He attacked me."

"And why did he do that?" He shrugged and she went over and took the gag out of Kashi's mouth.

"Why did you attack him Kashi? You can't say it's because he's a traitor."

"I could."

"Then you're saying I am one as well?"

"… No." She cut him down.

"You both need to get along. I can't have my brother and my boyfriend attacking each other. You two were almost friends before."

"_Before_ being the key word."

"You loved me _before_ as well. How much has that changed?" It was silent for a while until Itachi coughed, instantly gaining her attention as she turned and went over to him.

"Healing?"

"No."

"I won't be able to for a while, so I should now." She tensed when Kashi pulled her away.

"We need to get back to the village."

"Let me go Kashi."

"No."

"Kashi, I mean-"

"I'm sorry." They both stared at him.

"What?"

"I apologize for the trouble I have caused, but you need to see that it was necessary. I don't see how it has truly effected you though, Kakashi." Riz felt him let go of her and heard him sit down. She smiled at Itachi and began to heal him, feeling Kashi's eye on them the entire time.

"That's better. This should last for at least two months. And that's taking into account your usual activities." She hugged him and turned to Kashi, "Now we can go." He nodded.

"Okay. I'll be right there."

"Ano, I don't think-"

"Go imooto. We'll be fine." She frowned, but nodded anyway and left. Itachi turned to Kakashi.

"… I'm sorry. Riz told me everything and… I didn't quite believe her."

"You need to apologize to her, not to me." Kashi nodded and turned away.

"Thank you."

"Only half of the Akatsuki are truly evil." Kashi turned back but was met by only trees. He shook his head and raced off to catch up with Riz.

* * *

_**Hope you enjoyed the chapter! Don't forget to Review! And remember, start messaging me if I forget to upload! The Unknown Scribe should drop the The.**_


	7. 6:Let's Make a Deal!

**_Okay, I'm pretty sure I forgot to upload last week... I'm sorry people!!! But then again, no one cared enough to remind me either..._**

**_Oh well, Enjoy the new chapter!_**

**_Oh, and before I forget, I have a question for reviewer Infinate Eternity. In your review you put "reccent chapters seem completely diffrent. The description isn't as  
pronounced, and the dialogue is a little bit confusing for me." I would love for you to give me more than that! Examples on how it's completely different, ect. I really want people to enjoy this story, so please inform me if something changes! Thank you._**

* * *

Riz was early meeting with Kurenai the next day, and was told they had a mission. The mission was going to last at least a week and she was given the choice to go on the mission, or to go ahead and join with another team the next day. She chose to join another team unless they wanted her to come. It was a C-ranked mission and after saying hello and goodbye to Hinata, Shino, and Kiba, she went to Kashi's apartment. It was locked and she sighed.

"Okay, so he obviously doesn't want me in there." She frowned and went to the training grounds. She found his team there, but he wasn't. She scanned the area and found him in a tree. She smirked and snuck up behind him, pushing him out of the tree. His team looked up in shock when he landed on the ground.

"Kakashi-sensei? Is something wrong?"

"Continue training." He glared up at Riz.

"Why are you here?"

"Is it a crime to come see you? Naru-chan, Sasu-chan, Pink-chan, yo!" Naruto and Sakura waved, Sasuke just glared at her.

"You need to say hello Sasu-babe-chan!"

"Hi." Riz smiled and turned back to Kashi.

"I'm supposed to switch teams tomorrow. Nai-chan, Hina-chan, Bug-chan, and Pup-chan have a mission."

"So you decided to interrupt my team?"

"No, just you." He sighed.

"Okay! We're done for today!" Riz smirked.

"Awww, you didn't have to stop the training just because of me." He shrugged as Naruto came over.

"Why'd we stop so early sensei?"

"Because he's taking me on a date Naru-chan. It was just decided."

"A date?! You two are dating?! How cool, dattebayo!" Kashi winced.

"Okay Naruto, go now."

"Bye Naru-chan!"

"See ya!" He ran off to tell Sakura and Sasuke.

"Do you really think it was a good idea to tell him that?"

"What do you mean?"

"He's going to tell everyone."

"So?"

"Including Sasuke."

"… Oh. Do you think he's going to be mad?"

"At me."

"Why?"

"He'll take it as betraying you."

"That makes no se- Oh! I get it. Oops. Well, it can't be fixed now, so let's go on that date."

"I never said I was taking you on a date."

"No, but I did." He grinned and grabbed her arm.

"Well, since I am taking you out, I get to choose where."

"What?!" He raced off, Riz in tow.

* * *

Riz glared at Kashi's amused face.

"I can't believe you."

"What did I do?"

"I can't believe you let me drink ten freaking bottles!!" Kashi laughed and dodged the chair she threw at him.

"Don't tell me you didn't enjoy it!" She threw the table at him.

"Except for the hangover this morning, how I can't remember half the night, and how I have now been hit on by nearly half the village, male and female? I loved it. Never let me drink that much again."

"Maa, I like you being drunk." She pinned him to a wall.

"Then do you not like me now Kashi? I'm not drunk right now."

"I was only saying that you're a happy drunk, unlike some people." She glared at him and began to walk away.

"Hey! Where are you going?!"

"I'm supposed to meet with Guy, remember? I'm not going to be late." She raised her hand as she left, "I'm sure you can get down by yourself." Kashi stared after her and sighed.

"She's the one that always loved going to clubs."

xXx

Kashi met Riz at Ramen Ichiraku that night. She glared at him as she approached.

"What did I do?"

"You're too happy."

"Did your day not go well?"

"He's insane! Guy and Lee are both insane! I had to stay near Neji and Tenten to not lose it! What is with them?! Youthfulness this and springtime that, what does that even mean?!" Kashi laughed.

"They're always like that. You'll get used to it. Come on, I'll even buy this time." Riz sighed but smiled anyway.

"Thanks."

* * *

She woke the next morning to someone knocking at her door. She groaned when she remembered she had to meet with Guy again and went to open the door.

"Tenten? Did you need something?"

"I came to get you. We're not meeting at the training grounds today and I know Guy-sensei forgot to tell you."

"Oh, okay. Thanks. Come on in."

"Thanks."

"Want anything? Tea?"

"Sure." Riz nodded and went to make some tea. She came back with two mugs and sat down at the table across from Tenten, handing the cup to her in the process.

"Well, where are we meeting then?"

"We're meeting at the river today. I think we're sparring today, which is a shame. I wanted to do target practice." Riz laughed.

"Of course you did. You're good at it! When are we supposed to meet?"

"In about two hours, I just happened to be passing by and thought that I might as well tell you now."

"Thank you. Well, since we have time, why don't we go do some target practice by ourselves?" Tenten's eyes widened.

"Really? You want to? That'd be great! Let's go!" Riz laughed again.

"Hold on! I still need to get ready anyway. And yes, I would love to challenge you in this. It'll give me a chance to find a better nickname for you."

"Why do you need a nickname for me?" Riz shrugged.

"Habit I suppose. I do it to everyone. For example, Lee is Frog-chan, Guy is Spin-chan, and Neji is… well, I'm not sure. He's more difficult than people usually are. His cousin was easier." She smiled and Tenten laughed.

"And you don't have one for me yet?"

"Not quite. I have a few ideas, we'll have to see what sticks." Tenten smiled and finished off her tea.

"All right then. I'll wait here while you get ready, and then we can go to target practice. There's this new place set up just for it!" Riz got up and took the cups to the kitchen before walking down the hall to her room.

"Really? I was thinking about taking some targets into the forest or something and going from there, but we can try it. We can have a mini competition with it!"

"Only if you're ready to lose! I am a weapons master after all!" Riz smiled to herself, this was going to be fun. She got ready quickly and met Tenten at the door and they headed to Target-n-Hits. The walk there was silent, but not awkward, and Riz spent it thinking over what she knew of Neji since he was the hardest one to think of a nickname for. Tenten stopped in front of the only building in the vicinity.

"I'm assuming this is it Ten-chan."

"Ten-chan?" Riz only smiled.

"Shall we?"

"Let's go!" She rushed in and Riz grinned before following her. They quickly paid and stood side-by-side, ready to begin their contest.

"Get ready to lose!"

"Don't be so sure Ten-chan. You shouldn't celebrate before you have the trophy."

"Then let's start!" A whistle blew and the dummies started to pop up at random. They both threw at them.

Five minutes later and neither one had hit anything, much to Tenten's annoyance and Riz's amusement. Their kunai and shuriken had intercepted each other's each time.

"Stop doing that!"

"Doing what?"

"Intercepting my weapons!"

"Wouldn't it defeat the purpose of competition if I simply let you hit them?" She growled and focused on the field again as the bell rang again. They continued like that for a while, Riz laughing whenever Tenten would glare at her.

Half an hour later and their session was almost over. They both became more focused and eventually actually began hitting things as target appeared quicker and up to ten at a time.

xXx

"Tenten! Atsura! Over here! Hey, what's wrong Tenten?" Lee shouted at them from beside Neji. She glared at him as Riz laughed.

"Well, You Sure Seem to be in a Wondrously Youthful Good Mood Today Atsura!"

"Of course I am. Unless you have a reason not to be?"

"No! Today Nearly Defines The Greatness of the Springtime of Youth and Happiness!" He gave her a thumbs up and flashed a bright grin as she cringed inside.

"_I am going to have to stop this eventually, but I can't do that without blowing my cover now. Why did he have to become like this! He wasn't this bad before!"_

"Okay, we are sparring today! Pair up and Embrace this Delightful Day Given to us For the Springtime of Our Youth!"

Lee instantly paired himself with Neji, and Tenten groaned as she went to pair up with Riz.

"My Mind Has Been Changed! Neji, Tenten, and Lee will all spar together, and I shall challenge Atsura!" They all turned to him.

"What?!" He turned to Riz's shocked face.

"Is there something wrong?"

"Yes! Why do you want to spar with me?! You're their sensei! Their _jounin_ sensei! I'm a chuunin! I don't want to spar with you!"

"But I have to see how well you do without either of us holding back!" Riz froze.

"What do you mean by that?"

"Well, you were holding back the last time we fought, just as I was. You beat me then, but this time, I Shall Come Out Victorious! Let us begin!" He grabbed her arm and dragged her away from the confused genin to start their battle.

"I never said I wanted to spar with you!"

"Such Unyouthfulness! You absolutely must! I am not giving you so much of a choice in this matter! It has all ready been settled. And if I do not win, I shall do one-thousand jumping-jacks and 500 laps around the village!"

"I have a better idea."

"Oh really? Well what is it?"

"If I win, you have to stop shouting, challenging me, and not wear green or any spandex for a week."

"All right then! But be sure that I will win!"

"Wait, don't you want to make a bet? What happens if I lose?"

"Well, you will help me to get my Hip and Modern Rival Kakashi to wear this wonderful outfit for a week with me!" Riz cringed.

"Deal, but can it be a week while I'm on a mission or something? I don't want to see my boyfriend in that."

"You don't know that you'll lose just yet! Don't give up-! Boyfriend?!" She tilted her head.

"He didn't tell you? He asked me out quite a while ago. About a week or so ago actually."

"Congratulations on your successes in Love! It must be such a-"

"Can we just start all ready? Unless you've decided against sparring with me."

"Yes! Let us begin!" He took off his weights and got into position. She sighed and simply stood there, waiting for him to make the first move.

"Begin!" He charged, faster than the last time and hit her in the side. She flipped in the air and caught his arm as he tried to hit her. She smirked and twisted his arm to send him flying. She landed lightly and watched him, no expression on her face. He appeared behind her and did a spin kick. He looked around when she turned into sand.

"Very good! To be able to dodge me even at full speed! Let's see how w-!" He stopped talking as she attacked him, sending him flying into the air and chasing after him. He was caught in a whirlwind of paper, holding him there and cutting him. Hardly seconds later, she was above him, sending him crashing back down. She landed in a tree and watched him get up and look for her. She looked over and saw Neji, Tenten, and Lee watching their battle. She came up behind them.

"You do realize you're supposed to be sparring with each other, ne?" They spun around in time to see her leave, ending up behind Guy again. She grabbed his arms, took his legs out from under him quickly and tied him up with chakra wire. She dumped him on the ground and went to sit underneath a tree.

"I win."

"Yes! Very well done!" He turned to his team, "Would anyone else like to try?" They all shook their heads, making Riz laugh.

"Come on, I'll make sure to hold back, and you can make your own conditions." They all shook their heads again.

"Tenten, why don't you challenge her to target practice?"

"I did this morning! I all ready lost!"

"You guys are boring." She leaned back and closed her eyes.

"I'll fight you." She looked up.

"Neji?" He nodded.

"You have to agree to my conditions."

"Let's hear them."

"You must fight blind and can only use taijutsu." She blinked before smiling.

"You paid attention, didn't you? All right then, I did promise to let you set the conditions, but let's make this a competition, ne? Is there anything you want if you win?"

"I'll take your ring as a souvenir." Riz stopped smiling.

"No. No one gets this ring."

"Then you forfeit?" She glared at him.

"No. Fine then, deal. But, if I win, I have the perfect outfit for you to wear for all of tomorrow." He smirked.

"Fine, but it is not my destiny to lose."

"We'll just have to see about that. Now, am I getting a blindfold for this? Or were you planning on actually blinding me?"

"I Shall Help You With This! I Have a Blindfold on Me!" Riz didn't even bother asking why he had a blindfold with him and let him tie it on.

"There you go! So, Neji will get this ring? Odd, it looks familiar…" Riz yanked her hand back and punched him, making sure he was out of the way.

"All right. I'm ready. We can begin anytime, and I promise to use only taijutsu."

"Begin then." He got into his stance and she decided to take the offensive. She charged at him, jumping away when she sensed his chakra spin around him.

"What was that?!" _"Hyuuga main branch rotation technique?!"_ She jumped away again and pressed her fingers together to help her focus. She sensed him looking for her and as soon as his chakra sense was directed elsewhere, she shot out at him. He saw her and barely dodged before striking out at her. She couldn't manage to get away in time and got hit with his sixty-four palms technique. As soon as he stopped, she left again. She ended up in a tree, assessing the battle so far.

"_Shimatta! I knew I needed more practice fighting like this! It doesn't help that he's pretty good. So, what would be the best strategy for this?"_ She knew the answer before she had finished asking the question and sighed before jumping down.

"I quit." She was met by silence and she took off the blindfold, "You're pretty good Neji." He half smirked.

"Hand it over." Her hands clenched and she glared at him, ripping the ring off and throwing it to him before disappearing in a flurry of paper. They all looked at Neji.

"She didn't seem very happy with you Neji."

"Well Done Neji!" Lee and Guy both gave him a thumbs up as Neji looked down at the ring and smirked.

"Neji, I need to see that ring first!"

"Why?" Guy didn't explain and took the ring to inspect it.

"That's… impossible… Training is done for today! We'll regroup here tomorrow!" He disappeared.

* * *

Riz stood in the middle of the newly made clearing in the forest and looked around at the fallen trees. She glared at them and twitched.

"SHIMATTA!" She screamed out as she set them on fire. She left the clearing to burn after making sure it wouldn't spread and headed to the store.

She bought ten bags of jerky and thirty bottles of whatever alcohol happened to make it into her hands.

* * *

Kashi entered her apartment an hour later and did a double take. There were random bottles strewn about, combined with empty bags of jerky. He looked around and saw that all the traps were de-activated before heading farther into the apartment. He made it to the living room before he found her. She was lying in the midst of at least fifteen beer bottles and four jerky bags, all empty. Kashi walked over to her and kneeled down, pushing bottles aside to do so.

"Atsura? Answer me. Hello?" He sighed and shook her slightly, "Atsura? Come on." He sighed, "Riz, wake up Riz. Come on now, don't make me take you to the hospital."

"… No!" She jerked up, smacking him in the process. She looked at him, taking a minute before she figured out who it was.

"I'm sorry!" He waved her off.

"It's fine, but why are you drinking so much? What's wrong?" The last thing he expected was for her to burst into tears.

"I'm sorry! I'm so, so, so, so sorry!"

"Riz, calm down! Tell me what's wrong."

"I'm sorry! It's my fault! I lost and he took it and, and… I'm sorry!"

"Riz? Shh, it's okay, calm down love." She shook her head.

"No it's not! I lost!"

"A fight?" She nodded.

"And you made a bet on it?" She nodded again.

"What did you bet?" She began bawling again.

"The ring!" He looked at her in shock.

"The Akatsuki ring?"

"No you idiot! Your ring!" She glared at him, quickly switching to a confused, then depressed expression when he began to laugh.

"You kept that? You've been wearing it this entire time, even when you're acting as someone else?!" He quieted as he realized how serious the situation really was.

"Excuse me! I'm so sorry for not wanting to completely break from everything!"

"… I'm sorry Riz. Who has it then?"

"… Neji." He blinked.

"Wait, you lost to a genin?"

"I could only use taijutsu…"

"So?"

"And was blindfolded." Kashi sighed and smacked his forehead, rubbing at his eyes.

"I'll bite. _Why_ were you blindfolded?" She pouted.

"Because those were the conditions."

"Well, at least Guy or someone doesn't have it."

"Ano…"

"_Riz?_"

"Guy had seen it before the fight, and it's possible Neji let him look at it." Kashi groaned.

"Why did you bet it in the first place?!"

"Because it was the only thing he would have!" He sighed.

"Fine, it'll be fine. Come on, let's get you cleaned up and into bed."

"I'll be fine, I'm sober now."

"You just had-"

"Kashi, I actually don't get drunk easily, unless I allow myself. I was drunk, and snapped back talking to you. Okay?" He sighed again and pulled her up, trapping her in his arms.

"Fine." She squirmed.

"Let go."

"No."

"Kashi!"

"Are you whining?"

"… No."

"Liar."

"Am not!"

"You can be such a little kid."

"And you can't? Besides, I _am_ younger than you."

"Maa, and so cute too."

"I'm starting to think you're a child molester." He laughed and she turned around in his arms. She smirked and kissed him. He kissed her back, his eyes widening when her hands came up and pushed him away and onto the couch. She laughed at his shocked and confused expression before he grinned as well.

"Maybe I was." She rolled her eyes and sat next to him, putting her head in his lap.

"I'm strangely okay with that. Can you wake me when you leave?"

"I'm leaving?"

"Doesn't look like it." She cuddled into his lap, quickly falling asleep. He smiled down at her and shifted until they were lying next to each other on the couch.

* * *

Guy stood outside Riz's door, after three hours of pacing, heading to the Hokage, reconsidering, and repeating the entire cycle. He stood there for a minute and sighed.

"_Perhaps I should've gone and told the Honorable Hokage! No, this is better. This way I can figure it out before she gets in trouble, and my Eternal Rival is dating her so he probably knows about it, and since he doesn't mind…"_ He kept arguing with himself, his hand poised to knock, when the door opened.

"What do you want Guy?"

"Ah! Kakashi, my Eternal Rival!"

"If this is about another challenge, I'm shutting the door now."

"No! It is not! Although a challenge would be Wonderful, I have come for a different reason! I needed to speak with Atsura!"

"About?"

"About her wonderful performance today and her show of Youth!" Kashi didn't move.

"I'm assuming you saw the ring." Guy's smile fell.

"Yes, well, I was going to congratulate her as well." Kashi sighed.

"Come on in then. You'll have to wait until she gets out of the shower though."

"I do not wish to interrupt! Perhaps I should come back another time?"

"Sit Guy. I'm sure you've been going crazy because of this." Kashi walked off and knocked on the bathroom door to tell her that he was there. A minute later and she was out.

"Would you like some tea Guy? I would offer something else, but…"

"She drank all the alcohol all ready." Riz glared at him and went to make some tea, calling from the kitchen.

"Ask any questions now Guy. I'm not going to have you beat around the bush."

"Yes! Well, do you know of the Uchiha family?"

"You're beating around the bush Guy. We used to be pretty good friends too. You can be more direct." She came back out and set a cup in front of him, "Don't forget though, starting tomorrow, you're not allowed to wear any thing completely green, or anymore spandex."

"Of course!"

"And no more shouting. Now, let's get this over with. You know the truth, I'm sure, from looking at the ring. I'm assuming you want to know why I'm, one, alive, two, back in Konoha." He nodded slightly.

"Well, that makes it so much easier."

"Quiet Kashi. I have an idea, but I would like to have permission first. Guy, do you know about the Tsukiyomi?"

"No."

"It's kind of like a genjutsu you can't get out of and only the Uchihas' can use it. I would like to put you under it and just show you everything, in order to save time."

"How is that saving time? Wouldn't that take longer?"

"No, at most, it will only take two minutes in reality, but you'll be, in a way, living it out. I'll have it speed through things you know and things of no relevance."

"I will get out of it, right?"

"Of course! It will be taxing on your mind, but it shouldn't actually hurt, and you should be able to handle it." He nodded.

"All right then. Go." She bit her lip and nodded, activating the sharingan.

"_Tsukiyomi_." She whispered before he slumped forward. Kashi just let him fall, heading towards the kitchen.

"Oi! Where are you going?! You are NOT stealing my food again!" She went after him, pulling him away from the fridge.

"Hmm? You aren't tired?"

"It's been four years Kashi, I _have_ gotten better."

"Maa…" He started to go through the pantry and she tripped him.

"There are a few places I could hit you, and I know you won't be thanking me for it." His eyes widened before turning to the doorway where Guy had just staggered in.

"Guy! Are you all right? Any bad side effects?" He shook his head.

"So, that's what really happened? Did you know all of this Kakashi?"

"I wasn't put under the Tsukiyomi if that's what you mean, but she told me a summary at the very least." Guy nodded and stared at Riz.

"You should go home and rest, there will be time to talk tomorrow."

"No, I shall stay and-!"

"Go. I know you need some time, and you're probably feeling the effects from the Tsukiyomi. You must be tired." She grabbed his hand and began to lead him to the door, Kashi following her.

"You don't have to come Kashi, I'm just taking him home."

"And I'm just coming with you."

"Hn. Over-protective much?" She didn't wait for an answer and stepped outside. She paused before shrugging and disappearing. They ended up just outside of Guy's place and she led him inside, making sure he had something to wear tomorrow, since she wouldn't let him forget about their deal, and got him into bed before exiting. She didn't even flinch as Kashi pulled her to him and they appeared back in her apartment. She tried to get away from him, but soon gave up and sighed.

"I really need to re-set the traps." He chuckled and led her into her room, pushing her onto the bed.

"You need to sleep, I don't care if you're sober now or not."

"Kashi, I meant it when I said I was fine and that I needed to re-do the traps."

"I'm sure you'll be fine for one night."

"But you don't know that! You never know when you're someone going to try and assassinate you, or torture you, or even just destroy your room, or-!" Kashi put a hand over her mouth.

"Calm down. You're in Konoha, not an Akatsuki base, you'll be fine." She nodded slowly and pulled her head away.

"Right. Sorry. You're going back to your apartment now, right?"

"I suppose."

"I'll meet you at six tomorrow morning and we'll head to Guy's. I need to be sure he's all right."

"Why do I have to come?!"

"Please Kashi? Besides, we need to make sure he won't wear that green thing."

"I'll be busy."

"We can visit Obito afterwards. I'll even be late meeting with Guy's team." Kashi sighed.

"You're not going to give up on this, are you?"

"Nope."

"Didn't think so."

* * *

They stood outside Guy's door, waiting for him to open it. After two minutes, Riz knocked again. Another three minutes passed before she looked to Kashi.

"Can you tell if he's in there?"

"Can you?" She shook her head.

"Not by much. There's something alive in there, but I can't tell if it's him. Maybe he's asleep."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"Weaker chakra signature." He nodded and knocked again. Riz walked around to the back.

"I can't see him anywhere, and the chakra signature won't get stronger no matter where I am."

"Maybe he all ready left."

"But where would he be?!"

"Why would I know?" She came back to him and kicked the door in, instantly setting off about five traps set there. She caught the kunai and dodged the rest, heading inside to look for him.

"Stay there Kashi, it's amazing how many traps are set in here. It's like an obstacle course."

"Probably like that on purpose."

"I found him!"

"Where?"

"He won't wake up. Get your ass over here."

"But you said-"

"NOW!" He winced and entered the apartment. A few minutes later and he was in the bedroom.

"I noticed that there were a few traps unsettled when I came in, and it looks like he's unconscious. It can't be from the Tsukiyomi because he wouldn't have woken yesterday and made it home at all then. So he must have been attacked. I made sure he got into bed fine last night, so he didn't hit one of his own traps. This must've happened after I, we, left." Kashi nodded and began to look over him while Riz investigated the apartment with the sharingan.

"There's a faint chakra signature here, other than mine and Guy's of course. I can't tell whose, but I can track them down. Maybe they were thieves, did they take anything?"

"No. They had to have been shinobi, to get past his traps and be able to knock him out so easily, unless you found signs of a struggle?"

"No, and even then they would have been shinobi, to be able to beat him. So, it was either someone really fast, or someone that could hide easily and mask their chakra well. That leaves almost every shinobi, including some genin."

"Well, we should get him taken care of and then find out who it was."

"Right. Take him to the hospital while I go talk to the Hokage." Kashi nodded and Riz left, racing over the rooftops. She made a new record getting to the Hokage's. She strode right past the ANBU stationed outside and went into the office. He looked up at her with mild surprise.

"Is there something wrong Atsura?"

"Guy was attacked last night, he's unconscious and Kakashi's taking him to the hospital now. I want permission to track down whoever it was that did this."

"How do you know it was last night?"

"I walked with him home last night after he came over to congratulate Kakashi and I for getting together since he just found out. He was fine then. I had gone to see him this morning to make sure he kept his side of our deal."

"Deal?"

"We made a bet on our spar. If I won, he wasn't allowed to wear spandex or all green."

"And?"

"I won. Do I have permission?"

"Why do you want to so badly?"

"Because I can!"

"You're still on the probation, and as such, I don't think-"

"I can't just leave it alone like that!"

"Well, I suppose it'll be fine. You'll go with a team. Give me a minute and I'll set it up." An ANBU appeared and the Hokage gave him orders to get two other people and he left.

"Who's in the team."

"I have assigned Kakashi and Iruka to go with you."

"Really? This makes an interesting team." She turned when the door opened and the ANBU let Kashi and Iruka in. They greeted her and Iruka was filled in on what had happened.

"Now go." They all nodded and left.

* * *

**_Hope you liked it. Reviewed are loved and appreciated!_**


	8. 7:Missions, Sharks, and Hospitals

**_I'm not dead! Just in case anyone thought that. ^^' Sorry it took so long! I don't have a good excuse other than I had to move back into dorms and college started again. Well, enjoy!_**

* * *

"Where are we starting, and do you have any leads?" Riz turned to Iruka.

"Dolphin-chan, you need to quiet down. I'm trying to find him."

"You're just staring at the ground!"

"Any chance we could just tell him?"

"Will it shut him up?"

"Maybe, but it should make this easier."

"Go for it. _Way_ over there!" As soon as they left Riz set to her task: figuring out where the victim was. After a minute, she gave in and used the sharingan to track what little there was left to track. Just as she found the trail and was sure she would be able to follow it, Iruka yelled.

"WHAT?" She winced and turned around in time to see an angry Iruka standing there and his fist aimed for her head. She was sent crashing into the ground, looking up at him with a pout and her perfected puppy face.

"Why did you leave then?"

"Didn't Kashi tell you? _Dolphin-chaaan_, you're being mean to me! Kashi, Dolphin-chan's being mean!"

"And now you're whining about it? Yes, he explained it, now I want _you_ to!"

"Kashi was right, you ARE scary!" Iruka just glared at her.

"I'm a teacher Riz. I can easily ignore that face." She began to cry and he sighed, anger leaving him.

"Okay! All right! Stop crying!" She instantly stopped and smiled, standing up and throwing an arm around him.

"It's okay Dolphin-chan. Ita-chan can't stand me doing that either. Now, let's go catch the poor sap!" She began dragging him after her, Kashi following them with a smile on his face as he pulled out his book. He froze when it caught on fire.

"AHHH! NO!" Riz turned back and smirked, a purely evil look donning her face.

"I told you not to." She started off again, chatting to Iruka on the way. He followed them as if his entire life was over.

* * *

Koyoku leaned against a tree to rest his wounded leg.

"_Damn that man! Setting so many traps around! Damn, if someone finds him soon and he gets taken care of, he'll even live through it! If only those last few traps hadn't gone off!"_ He sensed people nearing and jumped into the tree, hiding himself. Three people jumped through the bushed, the girl stopping suddenly and looking around quickly, making the other two almost run into her. He held his breath as she looked up; they were obviously tracking him.

"What's going on R- Atsura? Why'd you stop?" She didn't even look over and there was suddenly a feral grin on her face. He felt his heart sink as what he dreaded came true.

"Found him." He exploded from the trees in a burst of speed, gaining distance from them. He heard one last thing before he gained too much distance to hear.

"Dibs."

* * *

He looked behind him, seeing no one. He'd been running for half an hour now, and hadn't seen or sense them even the slightest bit. Which made it even more shocking when he looked ahead and saw her sitting on the tree in front of him, looking all too much like a cat playing with her prey. He fell out of the tree and she landed in a crouch beside him, pinning him down in the same movement.

"You will regret this."

"Really? Shall I count on it?" She slid a kunai down his cheek to rest at his throat, "Why did you attack Guy?"

"Like I'd tell you." She tilted her head and smiled before pushing the kunai harder, another one being placed right by his ear.

"You might need a haircut, and I know you won't really need this ear, now do you?" He only glared at her and she laughed lightly, "Let me guess. You had an old grudge against him and wanted him dead. A pity that it's such a terrible reason. You couldn't even make this very much fun for me." He smirked.

"You'll pay for this girl."

"As you've said, but now I'm curious. How am I going to pay?"

"I have powerful friends. I'm part of the Akatsuki." He glared as she started to laugh.

"I can't believe you just said that!"

"You'll see. They're on their way now. Get ready to die."

"Who exactly is coming?" He grinned.

"Her name's Konan."

"You do realize you're the only one to call her that right?" He looked confused but smirked again when he sensed her coming.

"Konan! Over here!"

"Why are you panic- Riz?"

"Hello Paper-chan! I actually missed you!"

"How have you been?"

"Fine, you?"

"Fine. Is there trouble?"

"Yes." She pointed to Koyoku, "Him. He attacked Guy and I came after him. Kashi and Dol-Iruka are with me. Well, I actually left them behind, but same difference."

"And why did you attack Guy?"

"Does it matter! Stop chatting and kill her!" Konan glared at him and he paled.

"Do not order me around. I happen to like Riz, and you happen to be disposable." She turned away, "Riz, you should check on your brother soon. He has been getting worse."

"All right. Thank you Paper-chan." Konan gave her a rare smile and disappeared. Riz turned back to Koyoku.

"Well, it looks like I'll have to kill you now."

"You're part of Akatsuki?"

"No, she's not."

"Ah! Kashi, Dolphin-chan!" Iruka glared at her and she looked back to Koyoku.

"We'll just have to say we didn't have much of a choice."

"Okay. You two just missed seeing Paper-chan. Maybe I can catch up with her, I wanted her to meet you Kashi."

"No thanks. I all ready have to deal with your brother, I don't need any more affiliation with the Akatsuki."

"Fine. Can you two make a camp? I'm going to get rid of him and then I have to-"

"Go see Itachi?"

"Yes."

"Go."

"Thanks Kashi." She turned to leave.

"I'm coming with you."

"What?"

"I want to talk with Itachi."

"Itachi? That's _your_ brother?" They looked down at Koyoku as if they had just remembered he was there.

"Kakashi-sensei can take care of him." Riz sighed.

"Still as stubborn as ever Dolphin-chan." Iruka grinned.

"Which way?"

"Kashi…?"

"Go. I'll handle it, but you both owe me."

"I'll cook you dinner tomorrow."

"I'll help her."

"Deal, and it better be big." They grinned and took off, Riz following Konan's trail. They caught up with her sooner than expected. She was leaning against a tree when they found her.

"You were waiting for me, ne?" She nodded.

"Is this Kakashi?"

"Nope, Iruka. I told you about him, didn't I?"

"The dolphin man?" Iruka turned red and stuttered.

"W-what?" Riz laughed before her face turned serious.

"Where is he?"

"This way." She jumped into the tree and took off, Riz and Iruka right behind her.

"Paper-chan! You need to slow down! Dolphin-chan's not that fast!" She glanced back and nodded, slowing down so they could keep up. When they got to a clearing and stopped, Iruka apologized.

"Sorry, I'm just not fast enough."

"It's okay Dolphin-chan. We still love you!" He blushed and turned slightly away. Riz looked at Konan to see the smallest amount of pink on her face before heading into the tent there. Both Konan and Iruka looked up when they heard shouting. Next thing they knew, a blue man was crashing into the trees between them. He shook his head and jumped up, hiding behind Konan when Riz came out. Iruka noticed her blush when she glared at the blue man before grabbing him and nearly dragging him into the tent. He entered it to see Itachi looking away from them. He was blushing too.

"_What happened?"_

* * *

Konan looked down at Kisame. He was doing a mix between glaring and pouting aimed at the tent. She rolled her eyes.

"What happened?" He didn't even look at her, "What did you do to piss her off this time?"

"I didn't do anything! She's just an ass!" Konan just waited and he glared at her.

"She is! We weren't doing anything and then she comes in, yells and scares us, and then throws me out!"

"Scared you?"

"It's not like we were expecting her to come barging in."

"What could you two have possibly been doing?" Konan stopped and stared at him, "Don't tell me…"

Kisame made a point not to look at her.

* * *

Iruka stood to the side as Riz healed him, getting his wounds out of the way before settling her hands on his chest to help with his lungs. As she had worked on the cuts and everything, she had told Iruka about it.

"This will be painful Ita-chan, but you can't move." She applied more pressure and he jerked. She stopped and sighed, looking over to Iruka.

"Dolphin-chan, can you hold him please?" Iruka nodded and grasped onto Itachi, making sure he stayed in place while Riz healed him. Itachi glared, but didn't argue.

"Why is he here anyway?"

"Because we're technically on a mission."

"And you decide to come visit me?"

"Well, we ran into Konan anyway because we were hunting Koyoku because he had attacked Guy, who is now in the hospital for it."

"Koyoku is not that good."

"You sure are talkative. Guy had just found out the truth, and gotten out of the Tsukiyomi because it would've taken too long to actually explain everything to him. Koyoku came in after Guy had fallen asleep and managed to disarm some traps. The only reason Guy isn't dead is because, one, I found him the next morning, and two, because Koyoku is terrible and got caught in some traps. Are you mad?" He winced as she shifted and started on the other side.

"No." Riz smiled and finished quickly.

"Don't let him go yet Dolphin-chan. We need to talk."

"If this is about-"

"It is."

"It's not really your concern. I am your _older_ brother." She just looked at him before waving at Iruka.

"Let him go. Can you make sure Sushi-chan doesn't leave? Paper-chan can help you with that if she's still out there." Iruka nodded and smiled before leaving, hearing Itachi tell him the actual name was Kisame.

"_This should be good, but I really want to know what happened."_ As soon as he was out of the tent, he looked around, seeing Konan, but no Kisame.

"He's up there." Konan pointed above him and he couldn't help but laugh. He was tied upside-down near the top of the tree.

"Any idea what happened?" Iruka stopped laughing.

"No, but I will eventually."

"If I don't get told, I'll have to come ask you." Iruka blushed again.

"I don't think you should."

"I'm not going to steal or attack anything in Konoha while there. No one will even know I was there."

"Except for Riz."

"I'll make sure to visit her too then." Iruka smiled slightly.

"Fine."

* * *

Riz glared at Itachi and he just looked away. The tent wall had suddenly become extremely interesting.

"Ita-chan…"

"Leave it alone imooto."

"No! What the hell did you think you were doing?"

"Wasn't it obvious?"

"But-!"

"Maybe you shouldn't just come in without warning." She stopped glaring and suddenly looked sad.

"But, I was worried about you."

"That face won't work this time." She looked away from him with a small sigh.

"I didn't want it to. I want to know why you didn't tell me anything, and why you refuse to talk to me now."

"Riz… You worry too much."

"So? Damn it Ita-chan, you're my brother!"

"What about Sasuke?"

"He doesn't even know I'm alive! And he would hate me for it! Plus, you're ill and shouldn't be making out with a shark man! Not to mention you never even told me you were gay." Itachi was looking away again and blushing.

"Well then, fine. I'm gay and with Kisame." Riz just stared at him.

"You haven't been… doing anything, have you?" His head whipped around to glare at her. The glare was a bit lessened by the blush across his features.

"No!"

"You've only kissed, that's all? For sure?"

"Yes!"

"Do you swear on your life, his life, and Sasu-chan's life?" He glared at her.

"Yes." Riz sighed.

"Well, good luck with it then. But if I hear anything about him hurting you, or that you've gone farther…" Itachi covered her mouth.

"I get it. I'll be fine. Or should I lecture you as well?"

"You did when I first began dating Kashi, remember?" He nodded.

"Fine. Go now; I'm sure you'll want to talk with Kisame. Be nice imooto."

"I'll try."

* * *

She smiled at Kisame when she got up to him and he tried to at least twist away.

"Well, now that I've broken you two up…"

"What? No!" She did try to keep a straight face; tried, and failed. She burst out laughing.

"No, I didn't. I've talked to Ita-chan though, and I don't mind that you two are together. Although, why didn't you tell me? It can be easier for you to get a hold of me sometimes."

"Because it's none of your damn business! No one wanted you to know because you're a brat! Why don't you just leave people alone! No one really likes you anyway!"

"Well, I _did_ like you Kisame." She glared at him and jumped down, heading back to where they left Kashi. Iruka and Konan looked at each other before Konan went to talk with Itachi and Iruka chased after Riz.

* * *

Riz! Wait! Slow down! Tell me what happened!" She stopped and let him catch up.

"It's not your problem Ruka."

"Riz… Tell me. We are still friends, right?"

"… Yes."

"Then tell me. Please." She shook her head.

"Never mind Ruka, it doesn't matter. I'm not even bothered by it anymore." She smiled at him, but faltered when she saw his face.

"I'll be fine."

"I'm going to go back and ask, and maybe even castrate Kisame if you won't tell me." Riz smiled at that.

"As funny as that would be, no. Fine, I'll tell you what I just found out."

* * *

"Itachi.

"What?"

"Riz is upset."

"How come?" He looked up at her suddenly.

"Kisame." Itachi growled and stalked out. He went straight up to the shark man.

"What. Did. You. Do?"

"I got her out of our hair. Now she won't bother us." He smiled, faltering under Itachi's glare.

"She had just said she was okay with it and she just doesn't want any, problems, to arise, and you upset her because of it?" Kisame pouted, but it didn't deter the glare.

"Come on, calm down. She'll be fine. Can you let me down now?" Itachi cut him down and watched him fall. As Kisame began to climb up to him, he threw a kunai at him before taking off, leaving a stunned Kisame, and an amused Konan behind.

* * *

Iruka stared at her, a vein ticking.

"I can't believe he said that! I'm going back to-!"

"Ruka! Wait!"

"Yes Iruka. Wait." They both looked up to see Itachi standing there.

"Aniki?"

"Tell me what he said."

"Exactly what he said?"

"Yes. Now Riz."

"No. You'll get mad at him, and then I'll have ruined your entire relationship."

"No you wouldn't have. He would've."

"No! It'll be my fault just like he said-" She clamped her hands over her mouth. Itachi grabbed her arm and yanked it away.

"Tell me Riz." She glared at him.

"No! And don't you dare try and threaten me-!" He put her in the Tsukiyomi before she finished her sentence and she slumped forward. He caught her and leaned her against a tree. He stepped back and glared when she woke up.

"You still wouldn't tell me."

"You're right, I didn't!" She tackled him, tied him up and hung him from the tree.

"Riz, let me down."

"No!"

"Then tell me what he said."

"No!" She stormed off and Iruka watched her leave with a sighed before cutting Itachi down.

"You're going to tell me?"

"Yes, but you won't like it."

"Just tell me."

"He said, according to what Riz told me, 'Because it's none of your damn business. No one wanted you to know because you're a brat. Why don't you just leave people alone. No one really likes you anyway' except that he pretty much shouted it at her." By the time Iruka was done, Itachi was glaring again.

"Damn him." He left, completely ignoring Iruka's protests.

* * *

Riz glared at Iruka.

"What the hell?"

"Sorry, but you wouldn't have stopped otherwise."

"What did you want Ruka?"

"I told Itachi what happened."

"You what?"  
"I had to! You would want to know if something happened between him and Kakashi-sensei, wouldn't you?"

"But Ruka! They may break up and it would have been entirely my fault!"  
"No, it wouldn't have been. You didn't do anything wrong. You're mad at Kisame and were trying to protect him for Itachi's sake, right? There's no fault in anything you did."

"No! Damn you!" She jumped away, hoping to stop Itachi. Iruka watched her go before heading back to help Kakashi with the camp.

* * *

"Aniki! Aniki stop!" Itachi looked at her.

"I have all ready talked to Kisame imooto."

"Gods, please don't tell me you've broken up." Itachi smiled.

"No, but he apologizes. He didn't think you would let us be together if he didn't get you away. He couldn't seem to think that you may be okay with it." Riz let out her breath.

"Good. I would've felt so bad Aniki…" She slumped forward, her panic having exhausted her. Itachi caught her.

"What am I going to do with you? You just have to worry too much."

* * *

Itachi took her back to Iruka and Kakashi, putting her into Iruka's arms before leaving. Iruka looked at the sleeping form as Kakashi took her from him worriedly.

"She's been too stressed, and the entire thing with Itachi didn't help. She exhausted herself."

"She can have almost more energy than Naruto, and she's exhausted herself?"

"Think about it, she's been having to hide for years, and now she's back in Konoha as another person and has to worry about that, as well as worry about Itachi and his condition. Then all of this happens. Plus, she has to be worried about Sasuke and probably you too."

"Me?"

"Yes. You have changed, maybe not much, but it may worry her. She might even think that you two shouldn't be together, and she has to feel bad about leaving you and the village. She probably takes blame for you having never dated anyone else." Kakashi shrugged.

"She's not only to blame." He walked into the tent and laid her down before getting into his own sleeping bag. Iruka came in a minute later and sighed. It looked like he got the watch tonight.

* * *

Riz stretched and looked around again before sighing.

"They really need to decorate a bit. Everything looks the same no matter which way I turn." She turned another corner and ran straight into someone with blond hair.

"What the hell, un?"

"Oops, sorry about that."

"Hunh? Who're you?"

"Riz, you?"

"Deidara."

"… Are you a boy?" He twitched.

"Yes!"

"I thought so, but couldn't be sure."

"Why are you even here, un?"

"I'm part of the Akatsuki now. Kind of why I'm wearing this cloak." She paused and stared at him.

"What?"

"Why'd you leave the Stone Village?"

"Why'd you leave your village?"

"Necessity, obviously."

"I got kicked out."

"Why?"

"They couldn't appreciate my art, un!"

"Your art?"

"Yeah!"

"Could you show me?"

"Fine, come on!" He led her down a few more corridors before entering a room. There was a red-haired man in there working on a doll. Riz walked up to him.

"Yo! I'm Riz, who're you?"

"Sasori."

"What's with the dolls? Are you a puppet master?" He ignored her.

"What is with all of you people? Was there some rule that I didn't know about? Upon joining the Akatsuki you must try to never say more than two words at once. What the hell?" She heard a snicker from behind her and turned around with a smile.

"I'm glad someone found it funny. I was starting to think this guy had a problem with his voice."

"He's always like that. Watch your heads!" She ducked just as the bomb went off.

"What was that for?"

"Art, un!"

"… Art?"

"Yeah."

"… How fun! I want to try!" Deidara smiled until he looked behind her.

"Shit."

"Deidara… What did I tell you?"

"I have to go, see you, un!" Riz turned around and tilted her head.

"What's wrong?" Sasori glared at her and sat back down.

"Of course. You finally talk, and it's only because you're mad at Deidara." She leaned over him to see what he was working on.

"I think it would work better if you used this piece instead." She reached over and inserted the piece, narrowly missing him hitting her.

"Get out."

"Why?"

"You're messing things up."

"I am not!"

"Out!" She pouted but left anyway, tossing a small puppet back at him.

"I fixed it for you." She wandered about for a bit before giving up and sitting down to wait.

"… What are you doing?" She opened one eye to see Konan standing there.

"Waiting."

"For?"

"You apparently. I got lost."

"… Okay. We've found you a partner."

"Really? I get a partner? So I have to share a room now?"

"Sort of. His room will be joined to yours. Follow me."

"Right. So, who is it?" Konan turned the corner and Riz froze, her eyes narrowing. The man turned around and grinned.

"Well, well, well. Uchiha Riz, finally came to your senses?"

"Paper-chan, _please_ don't tell me that stupid, creepy, perverted, snake-man is my partner!"

"Then I won't."

"Can you honestly tell me he isn't?"

"No." Riz stared at her, looked at Orochimaru, looked back at Konan, looked back at Orochimaru, and took off. She skidded to a stop right before running into a green, thing.

"Who are you?"

"Riz. You?"

"Zetsu."

"Nice to meet you. Can you do me a favor? I just got partnered with probably the worst person possible and he's a-"

"I don't care."

"**Can I kill her?"**

"… You're a plant?"

"Yes."

"I wonder how you would taste boiled."

"I hate you."

"**Die."** Riz took off again, eventually running into Sasori.

"Sori-chan!"

"Don't call me that."

"You have to help me! I just got partnered with Orochimaru and I can't stand him and-"

"Who?"

"Stupid, creepy, perverted, snake-man." Sasori looked around her.

"The man with Konan." Riz looked behind her and jumped behind Sasori.

"I am NOT going near him!" Sasori looked back at her.

"Let go." She shook her head wildly.

"Riz, he is your partner." She glared and pouted. Just then, Itachi came up behind Konan and Orochimaru. He looked over to see Riz cowering behind Sasori.

"What is going on?" They all turned to look at him. Riz perked up and jumped him.

"Ita-chan! They partnered me with that bastard!" She pointed at Orochimaru, whose smile was gone.

"Is the rest of the clan here as well?" Sasori just looked at them.

"Riz, let go of me." She pouted, but let go and stood beside him.

"I have an idea, Kisame can partner with him instead! I'll partner with you Aniki!"

"We're going on a mission tonight imooto, so no."

"You never told me about a mission."

"I just did. If you had come to the meeting as you were ordered, you would have known."

"Fine. Don't die then." She looked over to see Sasori walking away and decided to follow him.

"Paper-chan, if our rooms are joined, is there a lock?"

"No."

"All right." She turned to Orochimaru, "If you so much as pretend to touch me at all, I'll destroy you in every way possible." She smiled and turned to follow Sasori.

"Wait up!"

"What?"

"Can you teach me about those puppets?"

* * *

They hurried back to Konoha the next morning and it was decided that Iruka would turn in the report because he was scheduled to work the mission room that day anyway, unless he hadn't gotten back in time. Iruka didn't want Kakashi to do it anyway, and he now had the job of getting her into the hospital to get checked out. Iruka left them at the gate in a fit of laughter at Riz's pouting glare, and Kakashi's helpless look. Kakashi sighed.

"Come on Atsura, let's- Hey! Wait a minute! Come back here!" Riz ignored him and concentrated on getting away faster without making any injuries worse.

"_I can't go to the hospital! I hate them! And if I get checked over, I'll have to stay from all of my previous injuries, the millions of times that I've been poisoned, and since some of the poison is still in my system, I'll never be let out! I CAN'T GO THERE!"_ Her eyes widened as Kakashi caught up and grabbed her.

"HELP! RAPE!" He instantly let go of her in shock and she kept running, going faster than before. She skidded to a stop and spun around when he appeared in front of her, only to come face-to-face with a clone. They both grabbed her and tied her arms behind her back while the clone tied her legs together. He then proceeded to throw her over his shoulder and head back to the hospital.

She kicked and screamed the entire way there, drawing almost everyone's gaze. Kashi glowered and shifted her before beginning to travel by rooftop again. After a few more minutes, he couldn't take it anymore. She was yelling herself hoarse, and his back and sides were getting bruised beyond belief.

"_How had Itachi ever managed to do this?"_ He threw her down and glared, making sure she wouldn't get away.

"Stop that! You probably won't even be in there for that long!" She glared back at him and hissed.

"Says you, whom I'm sure is no medic and is merely taking a guess in order to get me to stop complaining. What would you do if I burned every single mask and book you own, and make sure you couldn't get anymore?" Kashi twitched but didn't answer.

"Then do it. I'm going to take you to the hospital no matter what you do." He picked her back up and ran to the hospital. As soon as they were in there, he checked her in quickly and carried her up to a room, tying her onto the bed.

"It's the most advanced chakra wire, so don't even try." He left the room as a nurse came in.

"Okay, I'm just going to check you over and make sure you're all right, okay?"

"No, not okay." She seemed amused and continued her work anyway. Riz didn't move at all. She even held her breath, but watched their every move. Every time she saw Kakashi, she glared. Kakashi would purposely ignore her. The 'if looks could kill' saying crossed his mind. The nurse left and came back twice, the most recent time with a slightly worried look. A few minutes later, a more skilled medic came in and checked her over. He left without saying a word, but when he came back, he had a syringe and was worried.

"Don't worry now, this won't hurt. I'm going to have to put you under for a little bit."

"No! HELL NO!" She began to struggle again.

"Calm down. I won't do it! Calm down!" Once she stopped enough to listen, he began again, "Okay, will you please follow me then, without trying to leave? It will get you out of here sooner if you do, and I won't have to knock you out." Riz glanced around and saw Kashi waiting by the door.

"I'll come, if you throw Kakashi out." The medic nodded.

"Fair enough." He went and told a nurse and Riz grinned as Kashi was led away. She was untied and made herself resist the urge to bolt. She followed the medic out and down the hall to a different room. She was told to lie on the bed so they could do some testing. She did, and instantly regretted it when it began to move.

* * *

Kashi waited outside for almost an hour before Riz came back out scowling. He jumped up and went over to her, instantly getting punched in the face and sent flying backwards. She glared at him and disappeared, going back to her apartment. She wasn't surprised to

see Itachi there, but Kisame was a surprise.

"What are you two doing here?"

"What took you so long to get here? We've been waiting for some time now."

"I was forced into the hospital." Itachi swallowed his laugh as Riz glared at him. Kisame just looked at them both.

"What's the big deal? It's just the hospital."

"Hospitals are EVIL!" Kisame took a step back.

"Okay, calm down."

"Don't tell me to calm down!"

"Calm down." She glared at Itachi, but quieted.

"Why are you here?"

"Making sure you were all right, and Kisame wanted to apologize in person."

"You didn't have to."

"Yeah, I did. I'm sorry for yelling at you and everything. I just didn't think you'd be okay with it."

"It's not really my decision Sushi-chan. It's not like I'm homophobic either."

"Yeah, okay. I still shouldn't have said that."

"No, you shouldn't have, but it's over and done with now. It's past, so what's it matter?" Kisame shrugged.

"We should be going."

"Bye Ita-chan! Bye Sushi-chan! Don't do anything stupid!" They blushed lightly at the comment and disappeared just before Kashi appeared at the window.

"Itachi was here?"

"Yeah, Kisame came to apologize."

"Are you going to apologize?"

"For what?"

"For hitting me!"

"Too bad."

"What? You had no right to hit me!"

"No right Kashi? You tied me up and dragged me to the hospital, where I had to go through many tests and got pumped full of healing chakra and medicine, and you're saying I had no right to hit you? You're lucky that's _all_ I did." Kashi paled slightly.

"You didn't have to hit me. It was for your own good." She slammed the window shut, almost breaking his fingers and making him fall. She locked it, changed, and got into bed facing away from the window. Kashi sighed and broke the window open, instantly ducking and avoiding the traps before climbing onto her bed. He shook her and caught her hand as she tried to hit him. She glared at him, her sharingan activated and he sighed.

"If they needed to heal you so much, you obviously needed to go there, and it was better to go now rather than wait until things got worse. If you had waited, you may have had to stay overnight, a couple of days, or even longer. You never know." Riz rolled her eyes.

"Fine. I'm too tired to argue with you right now anyway. Night love." Kashi smiled at her back and cuddled against her.

"Goodnight Riz."

* * *

**_Review! I know it's not that good, but I didn't feel like going back over it and fixing it. ^^'_**

**_A note to Infinate Eternity: I looked back through and realized that too! I'll try and improve on that, but I suppose it probably won't show up on here for a while since I have written very far ahead on this story, but keep forgetting to upload chapters. I'll try though! as much as I love dialogue, I know that everything else is extremely important too! I think I was being a bit lazy there. Thank you for pointing that out to me!_**


	9. 8:Break up before ANBU

**_I'm trying my best to get you all caught up to where I am in the story! So here's another chapter for you all! Don't forget to review!_**

* * *

Riz woke to find Kashi gone in the morning. She sat up and looked around, smiling when she heard him curse from the kitchen. She got dressed and walked into the kitchen to find a note on the table, and Kashi trying to cook breakfast.

"Yo!" She smiled when he turned, covered in flour.

"Did you get into a fight with the flour love?" He growled and she laughed, opening the note.

"What's it say?"

"I'm meeting with Asuma today."

"What happened to Guy?"

"He apparently said that I could switch teams. He's getting out of the hospital today though."

"Is that so?"

"You sound like you care _so_ much." She looked up, slightly confused when he stood beside her. Her eyes widened when he grinned.

"Don't you da- AHH!" He jumped on her, covering her in flour as well. She pushed him off her and glared.

"Oh, it is on!" She tackled him before jumping away and grabbing a handful of flour and proceeding to throw it at him. A few minutes later and they were rolling on the floor, the kitchen covered in flour. Riz managed to pin him down and smiled, kissing his nose quickly before getting up and going to the sink. Kashi grabbed her from behind.

"Is there a problem?"

"Nope." She sprayed him.

"Hey! Stop that!" She laughed and kept spraying him, getting the entire kitchen wet in the process. He caught a hold of her and dunked her head under the spray while pouring some on her back.

"Ah! Stop! Let go!" She elbowed him and spun around to glare at him. She stopped glaring and began to laugh.

"What's so funny?"

"Look at yourself!" He looked down before grinning.

"Look at you!" She looked down and laughed.

"We're dough monsters! Roar!" They both collapsed to the floor in laughter. Riz looked up at the time and sighed.

"I have to go soon. Hey, wait! Look what you did to my kitchen!" Kashi looked around.

"Oops."

"I'm going to be late now! I have to clean this up, get ready, and still meet Asuma today! I don't even know where I'm supposed to meet him!" Kashi grabbed her and pulled her back onto the floor and into a hug.

"Calm down. I'll clean it for you. I am sorry though, I never got to finish making breakfast." She laughed.

"I'll be fine, besides, I still owe you dinner, remember?"

"That's right! You are going to let me pick it, aren't you?"

"Nope!" He groaned.

"Fine."

"You'll like it, don't worry. I better get going though, I have to wash all this off now." She left and Kashi sighed.

"Well, at least this is a good reason to be late."

* * *

Riz found Asuma easily enough. She looked around at his team as he introduced them.

"Ino…"

"Hiya!"

"Choji…" He just kept munching on a bag of chips.

"And Shikamaru." He was asleep. Riz twitched.

"Nice to meet you all." Ino smiled and grabbed her arm.

"We should talk! We could become great friends, you know?"

"… Wait, shouldn't all of you be training or something?"

"Nah, if Asuma-sensei wakes Shikamaru up, it'll just be to play Go, and Choji's always too busy eating."

"That's not right! You should all be training!" Asuma looked up at her and Shikamaru woke up.

"Troublesome." Riz glared at them.

"You said they play Go, right?"

"Yeah."

Then I challenge you Asuma. If I win, you all get to begin training!"

"If you beat Shikamaru, then we'll train everyday you're with us."

"Deal. Get up Laze-chan."

"Laze-chan?"

"Too bad."

"Troublesome." He got up and Asuma set up the Go board, confident Riz would lose. They began to play in silence. A few moves into the game, Riz noticed that Shikamaru kept putting his hands together oddly. She shrugged it off.

"_There's no chakra use, so he isn't trying to cheat."_ The game lasted for almost an hour before it ended. Asuma counted the points, then re-counted them. He was counting it for the third time when Riz stopped him.

"Is there something wrong? You've checked it over three times now."

"I just don't understand it. Shikamaru's a genius, how did you beat him? You didn't cheat, did you?"

"You were watching the entire time, you tell me." Asuma shook his head and Riz stood up.

"Didn't think so. Well, you promised. What is the plan then?"

"Well, I guess we'll do sparring today." Riz took Choji's chips away and kicked Shikamaru in the side. They both yelled at her.

"We are training now. You'll get the chips back when we're done. And sleeping is not training, so get up!" Choji glared and attacked her, trying to get the chips back. She burned them.

"AAHHH! HOW COULD YOU?"

"Easily."

"Okay, well, everyone pair up." Choji glared at Riz and Ino went over to Shikamaru.

"Looks like I'm with you."

"This is so troublesome."

"What are you going to do Asuma?"

"Watch and make sure nothing goes wrong." Riz rolled her eyes.

"Seriously, there is something wrong with the jounin here."

"Begin." Choji charged her as Ino began to attack Shikamaru. Riz watched her throw a flower before jumping out of the way.

"Human Boulder!" Riz jumped away again and watched him change course to get to her. She tilted her head before jumping in front of him and grabbing onto him, tying herself to a tree as she began to spin in the opposite direction, canceling out his roll. She untied herself and pinned him to the ground.

"Checkmate." She looked over and saw Shikamaru beating Ino with his shadow hold. Asuma stopped them then.

"Okay, well, that's enough for today. You can all go."

"That's it?"

"Yeah. Bye!" Riz groaned.

"Gods this is boring."

"They're always like that. Come on."

"No! I need to do something! I can't just not do anything!"

"Okay! Calm! I'll spar with you!"

"… Really?"

"Yeah, sure. We'll do taijutsu." Riz jumped on him.

"Thanks Kashi!"

"Yeah, but don't forget about dinner tonight. Iruka's helping you, right?"

"As far as I know."

"All right. Let's go to the forest, it'll be easier."

"… That made absolutely no sense, but okay." She followed him into the forest and made it to a small clearing, facing each other.

"Go." They both disappeared.

* * *

Riz laughed as they walked back to her apartment

"Cheer up Kashi! It's not like you lost. In fact, you actually won!"

"You had a blindfold on, and I still almost lost."

"But you still won. Anyway, I need to go to the store if I'm going to make you dinner tonight. You want to come?"

"No."

"Quit sulking Kashi! If you don't, I'm going to have to test your poison resistance." Kashi paled.

"I'm not sulking! I'll go tell Iruka to meet you at the store while I wait at your apartment, okay?"

"Fine. Don't eat or destroy anything. Got it?" He waved and ran off. Riz watched him for a minute before turning and heading towards the store. She had gotten a few things when Iruka found her.

"What are we getting?"

"Well, I'm not sure. I'm kind of just throwing things together as I think of them. If there's anything you'd like to make, get the stuff for it." Iruka nodded.

"How much are we making exactly?"

"I'm thinking of feeding an army apparently. Maybe we should invite other people over."

"I could ask Naruto to come."

"Go for it. If you think of anyone else, tell me." Iruka nodded and headed off to find whatever he needed for his recipes.

* * *

By the time they got back to her apartment, it was an hour later, and Naruto, Hinata, Neji, Kiba, Ino, Sakura, Kurenai, Lee, Tenten, Guy, Shino, Shikamaru, Choji, and even Sasuke had been invited. They had decided to just make all of the food and then just bring it to the training grounds for more room.

Riz looked at her empty wallet and sighed. Iruka did close to the same thing, but he still had some money left.

"He had better appreciate this." They entered the apartment and let Naruto, Sakura, Ino, Lee, and Guy in with their groceries before following them with their own. As soon as everything was put down, they shooed them out, along with Kashi.

"Why do I have to leave?"

"Because we said so!"

"We're going to be busy…"

"And can't have you in the way…"

"So get out!" He left quickly and went to the training fields. He was surprised to see, well, everyone there, but was quickly filled in and sat down to wait with the rest.

* * *

They were all getting impatient when Iruka came into the clearing. He didn't have anything with him.

"We need help carrying everything here. Who wants to volunteer?" Guy, Lee, Naruto, Tenten, and Kiba all came over.

"Anyone else? We're not letting anyone carry more than three dishes at a time. Sakura, Ino, Hinata, Kurenai, and Neji will all come too!" Iruka left, followed by his helpers. Choji, Shikamaru, Sasuke, Kakashi, and Shino watched them leave. A minute later, Guy and Lee came running back with the tables. Guy was carrying three long tables, while Lee had two. They ran off again as everyone wondered just how much food there really was going to be. Four more people came into the clearing and Kakashi went to greet them.

"Makoto, Michiko? What are you two doing here?"

"Atsura invited us. It's odd, she doesn't even know me." Kakashi shrugged.

"She's like that. She even invited both of you?" Ayame and Teguchi smiled.

"Yep! Where is she?"

"Everyone should be back soon with the food."

"Is there a reason for the party?"

"No. She owed me dinner and this is what happened." They nodded and followed him to the tables just as Guy and Lee came back with the twenty-one chairs needed.

"_When did she get the money for this?"_ Kiba and Naruto raced into the area and placed bottles of sake, soda, and water everywhere. They raced off again and a few minutes later, everyone came back, each carrying two or three platters. Some were steaming, some were frozen, but they all looked good (thanks to Iruka), and once everything was set out on the tables, it looked like enough to feed all of Konoha three times over. Everyone looked at her in shock and she shrugged.

"What? I like to cook, and Dolphin-chan's fun to cook with." No one said anything, instead choosing to sit down. Choji began to pile his plate, but his hand was slapped away.

"Not yet. Credit to the food goes to Iruka, credit to the dinner-turned-party goes to Kakashi. I owed him dinner and you all get the benefits. Guy and Lee helped me get the tables and chairs. Okay? Everyone thank them now." A murmur of thank you went around the tables.

"I couldn't hear that."

"Thanks!" She smiled.

"Much better. Now, dig in!" She gave Choji his plate back and sat down next to a blushing Iruka and a grinning Kakashi.

"You did most of the cooking Atsura."

"So? Kashi, you do know a genjutsu so you'll be able to eat, right?"

Yep!" He smiled and piled his plate, "I can't believe you brought ramen."

"I made it actually." Naruto, Iruka, Choji, Ayame, Teuchi, and Kakashi all looked at her.

"You know how to make ramen from scratch?"

"Yes, it took me a while to learn, but I love it. Enough talking though! Eat!" Everyone obliged happily.

Two hours later and the food was mostly gone, with everyone, even Choji and Naruto, completely full. Riz stretched and looked over everyone fondly. Some were passed out from drinking too much, including Sasuke, and others were just talking lightly. She smiled and sent everyone off except for Kakashi, Iruka and those that weren't awake. Most were carried off, but Sasuke was still there. Once everyone was gone, she knelt beside him. She watched him sadly for a moment before brushing some hair away from his face. She sighed and pulled him into her lap and hugged him. He stirred, but fell back asleep. She sighed and cuddled against him, remembering the times he would climb into her bed, or when she had climbed into Itachi's bed and he had joined them. She finally remembered the last night they were together. She was jerked out of her reverie when Kakashi placed a hand on her shoulder.

"We should take him home. He doesn't live at the Uchiha manor though."

"I know. Since when did he drink?"

"Since tonight. He wasn't allowed any before."

"How do you know?"

"I went there the first night here, before you even knew it was me."

"But-!"

"Quiet love, you'll wake him." She stood up, cradling Sasuke, and walked off, "Hurry up, I still don't know where he lives now."

* * *

Kashi sighed and looked over at Riz. She had slept over again since her apartment was a mess from all the cooking and everything. He couldn't sleep, even though he wanted to, and so he slipped out the window and ended up in front of the memorial stone.

She found him asleep there the next morning.

* * *

She sparred with Ino, and actually got hit a few times before pinning the girl down.

"Good job Flower-chan." She looked over at Asuma, "Are we done?"

"Well, that's different. I thought you would complain." Riz shrugged and let Ino go before walking away.

"What's wrong with her? She was way happy last night!" Shikamaru and Choji just shrugged before leaving.

* * *

The rest of the week went slowly, and Riz soon found herself seeing Guy back in his spandex and she was being summoned to the Hokage's office again. The ANBU let her in and had her sit down. He left and the Hokage began to talk with her.

Kakashi didn't see her that night, or the next.

* * *

Kakashi paced in Iruka's house as Iruka set his coffee down and watched him.

"Calm down Kakashi-sensei. I'm sure she's fine. Come and sit down, you're wearing my carpet down." Kakashi sighed and fell into a chair across from Iruka.

"But where has she been? What if they found out it's her? What if something has happened to her? She could be dead right now and we wouldn't even know it!" Kakashi got up and began to pace again. Iruka twitched and Kakashi found himself back in the chair.

"You need to calm down. She'll be fine. You're acting as if she can't take care of herself."

"How can you not be worried?"

"Because she's not a child!"

"But if they find out who she was and decided to have her killed, she might not object, and even if she did, she would have to leave the village again!"

"Wow, you two are loud." Their heads whipped around to show Riz standing in the kitchen doorway.

"Riz! … Why are you in jounin gear?"

"What did you think I had been doing?" Kakashi didn't move and Iruka began to laugh.

"… Why didn't you tell me that?"

"Why didn't you figure it out?"

"You should've told me."

"I couldn't. I left the Hokage's office and went straight into the test." Kakashi sighed.

"You're okay though. Nothing's wrong." He sat back down and she went over to him.

"Iruka's right Kashi, I'm not a child. If they had found out and I left, I still would've been able to at least send word somehow." She sat on the arm of the chair and looked at Iruka, "He's been acting like this for the past two days, hasn't he?" Iruka nodded.

"You can see where he's been walking." He pointed to his carpet and Riz laughed. She looked back at Kakashi as he pulled her down onto his lap.

"You know, no one has congratulated me yet."

"Congratulations on making the exact same rank you were almost five years ago." Riz threw a book at Iruka.

"Be nice. Kashi?"

"Mm?"

"I think you need to stop groping me."

"Hmm, I don't think so." She shifted.

"You should make me dinner then."

"No."

"Yes."

"No." Riz got up and sat by Iruka.

"Would you like to go to dinner with me then?"

"What?" Kakashi glared and she tilted her head.

"What's wrong? You wouldn't have dinner with me."

"I said I wouldn't _make_ you dinner."

"And you never offered to take me anywhere, so I'm going out with Dolphin-chan tonight." Kakashi growled.

"I haven't seen or heard from you in two days, and you're not going to go out with me?"

"… That was pathetic Kashi. I was gone for years. I've been gone on missions. There is no way that you seriously could have been so deprived. Stop being so clingy. You need to get over it."

* * *

"Hold on a minute!" She tossed the door open only to immediately shut it again.

"What was that for?" Kakashi poked his head in the door.

"Because you're annoying!"

"You said you wanted to talk to me!"

"I gave you a time too! An hour from now!"

"What's wrong with now?"

"Fine. Hold on a minute so I can finish what I was doing." Ten minutes later she walked into the room and sat down.

"Well?" He grinned, she didn't.

"Kashi…"

"Yes?"

"I'm breaking up with you."

"… Why?"

"Because you need to move on, you can't keep holding onto the past."

"Yes I can!"

"Sorry Kashi." She started to leave when he grabbed her.

"Stop it Riz. This isn't funny."

"It wasn't meant to be." She shook him off and left him standing there. She headed towards the Hokage mansion. As she passed the academy, she saw three kids trying to sneak out. She grinned and changed course. She jumped down right in front of them, making them run into her and fall over.

"Hey! What's the big idea?"

"I know you're supposed to be in class right now."

"Not true! We were let out early!"

"Really? Well then, who's your teacher? He or she must be really nice."

"Iruka-sensei."

"Really? Well, let's go thank him for letting you guys out."

"We all ready did! We have to go now, really!" Riz grabbed them as they tried to leave.

"Not so fast."

* * *

Iruka looked up as his door opened and Riz walked in grinning.

"Did you need something?"

"I think you lost something Dolphin-chan!" She dragged in the three kids, all bound together.

"Thank you Atsura." Iruka glared at the three.

"Do I get a prize?"

"Aren't you supposed to be meeting the Hokage?"

"Maybe. Later Dolphin-chan!" Iruka looked back up at his class to find them staring. Then they began to laugh.

"Dolphin-chan?"

"What's with that?" Iruka twitched.

"QUIET!" Riz winced as she left the building.

"If it wasn't so funny, I might have to feel sorry for them." She smirked and continued to the Hokage's. She didn't even have to enter and was just handed a mission scroll. She opened it and laughed before heading back to the academy. Iruka looked up in confusion as she opened the door again.

"Did you need something?"

"You tell me. You're the one that asked for help. My mission is to help you for the next week." She smiled and looked around at the students.

"Well, could you watch them for a minute then? Without harming them?"

"Define harm."

"_Atsura_. I mean it." She waved him off.

"Fine. I'll try to play nice. You just want me to watch them? I'm not supposed to teach them anything?"

"No. I don't want them scarred for life." He left the room and she looked back to see a room full of grinning faces before all hell broke loose.

xXx

Iruka stood outside his classroom, worrying about what he was going to see when he walked in. He couldn't hear anything, anything at all. He quickly opened the door and froze. They were working. Sitting quietly and actually working on their own. He looked over at a smiling Riz.

"What did you do?"

"You didn't think I would let them do anything, did you?"

"What. Did. You. Do?"

"I didn't harm them."

"Tell me. Now." She sighed.

"Fine. They attacked me. It was awful, I was surrounded, outnumbered, and had strict orders to not harm any of them. So, there I was when I thought of something. I was never ordered to not frighten them. Now, being a jounin means that I have quite a few means to scare people, especially children. How did I do this you ask? Well, I used a shadow jutsu to make it so no one could see, and when they finally could, all they could see was paper and on that paper was an endless sea of homework and failing grades!" Iruka twitched as she cackled. He smacked her.

"I told you to watch them! That's all!"

"But Dolphin-chan! If I did that, I may have gotten hurt and they would've all been gone!"

"Stop taking everything so literally!" She leaned back in his chair.

"Fine." Iruka twitched.

"Don't make me turn this next week into a living hell." She grinned.

"I'm counting on it." The bell rang and the kids all filed out of the room quietly. Not a minute after the kids were all gone, Guy burst into the room.

"Is it true? Have you truly gone and done such a thing?"

"What are you talking about Guy?"

"You broke up with my Eternal Rival Kakashi?" Iruka stared at her in shock.

"You did?"

"Yes. Is that a problem?" They both stared at her.

"Why?"

"He asked the same thing."

"Answer the question."

"Because I did. He needs to stop hanging onto the past. We've both changed. This should be good for him." They stared at her as she stood up and stretched.

"Is there anything else you needed me to do Ruka?" Iruka shook his head.

"No. Be here tomorrow at the beginning of class." She nodded and left. She walked slowly to her apartment and found a note attached to her door. She sighed and headed back to the Hokage's. She was let in immediately, the door locking behind her. She looked at the Hokage in confusion.

"You needed to see me sir?"

"I want to know why you are here."

"What do you mean? You summoned me here."

"I meant the village."

"Didn't we go through all of this when I first came here?"

"I want the truth this time."

"What are you talking about?"

"Why are you here and not dead Uchiha Riz?" She tilted her head.

"Sir, what are you talking about? My name's Atsura, remember?" He turned towards her.

"If you don't tell me the truth, you'll go into the bingo book next to your brother." She stopped smiling.

"Why don't you answer me a question first then. Why am I not all ready there if you know who I am? You gave me a mission this morning. Is it that you still trust me?"

"You were never the type of person to act without reason. There must have been a reason." She smirked.

"I underestimated you again old man. Fine, sit down and we'll chat."

* * *

He sighed and shook his head.

"Unbelievable."

"It's the truth."

"I believe you, no matter how difficult. Why did you not tell me then?"

"They would have found out and proceeded with the attack. Besides, would you have readily believed me and been able to attack them first?" He stared out of the window.

"No, but as a punishment for you…"

"Come on old man!" He smiled.

"After this mission, you have to become an ANBU, and I wish to see Itachi."

"What? No way!"

"You did leave the village for years without permission." She stared at him and groaned.

"So not cool. Fine old man, next time I see Ita-chan, I'll have him visit."

"Good. You can go now, although, I heard you broke up with-"

"Stop! I am sick of having people ask me why. I've told Kashi, Guy, and Ruka why all ready, so go ask them!" She disappeared and he laughed.

"How intriguing. She's still a child."

* * *

Riz appeared in her apartment and sighed.

"_Why me? Senile old man! He knows I don't want to become an ANBU! We argued about that constantly before! It's not fair! And I don't want to make Tachi go see him!" _She groaned and flopped onto the bed.

"Something wrong?"

"Aiee!" She fell off the bed and looked up to see an extremely amused Itachi, and hear Kisame trying his best not to laugh. She scowled and sat on the edge of the bed.

"What could you possibly want?"

"Not very friendly now?"

"No!" He smirked.

"Stopped to say hello. We followed Konan here."

"Paper-chan's in the village?"

"She'll be here soon. She went to see Iruka."

"Why?"

"She had a question."

"Okay. By the way Ita-chan, the Hokage has summoned you." He raised an eyebrow.

"And I should go?"

"The old man figured out who I was."

"At this rate, the entire village will know. I thought you wanted to be a secret?"

"Shut it."

"What else did he say?"

"I get to be an ANBU in a week." Itachi stopped himself from laughing as Kisame's head appeared in the window.

"Good luck with that." She glared at him and he smirked.

"Sushi-chan, one of these days that name might mean more than a joke." He paled and left the window.

"We should be going now."

"Don't forget to visit the old man."

"Hn." She sighed and flopped back onto the bed, nearly forcing sleep to overtake her.

* * *

She opened her eyes and glared at the ceiling before turning to glare at Konan.

"It's polite to let people know when you're there."

"You knew."

"I didn't know it was you until I finished waking up. What were you talking to Dolphin-chan for?"

"What had happened with Kisame and your brother."

"He told you then. You like him?"

"… Why?"

"Just wondering. Had a feeling."

"None of your concern."

"So you do." She closed her eyes again, "I'm tired Paper-chan, I'll see you some other time, ok?"

"Yes." Riz heard paper rustling as Konan left before trying to sleep again.

* * *

Riz sighed and looked back over at Sasori.

"Are you done yet?"

"No."

"Close?"

"If you don't want to wait, go find Deidara."

"I'll just get lost again. Which is exactly why I'm waiting for you."

"I don't even eat."

"I noticed. However, you still know your way around this place." He sighed and stood up.

"Fine. Come on." She jumped up and smiled.

"Wonderful! Although, I can wait if you weren't finished."

"It will wait."

"I'll try and help later, ok?" He didn't answer her. They were almost to the dining hall when they past Zetsu.

"**You.**"

"Shit, not again." Riz dodged and quickly hid behind Sasori as Zetsu attacked her. Sasori just looked at her before looking at Zetsu.

"Don't you have somewhere else to be?"

"**Must kill her.**" Sasori kept walking.

"You have a mission, and yet you waste time here." Riz quickly followed him as Zetsu glared, but walked off.

"Thanks." He glanced at her and she sighed.

"I first met him, he was an ass, and I wondered out loud how he would taste boiled since he's a plant."

"Idiot." She pouted.

"Mean." He ignored her and sighed when they entered the dining hall and Deidara came up to them.

"What took you so long, un?" Sasori began to walk away.

"I waited for Sasori."

"Why?"

"Because I can never find this place."

"You all ready missed lunch." Riz groaned and slumped to the floor.

"Not again…"

"You need to remember how to get here, un!" She smirked.

"I'm going to do just that, can you lead me back to my room?"

"Actually, there's a meeting now. You going this time, un?" She smiled.

"Nope. Later then." Deidara nodded and left. Riz looked around the dining hall before sighing and activating her sharingan. She looked behind her to see her and Sasori's trail and smiled. She headed off after it, marking the walls as she went.

She grinned when the meeting ended and everything went silent before hearing a collective, "What the hell?" The grin left when Itachi appeared in her room, his anger filling every corner.

"Yo Ita-chan. About the walls…"

"What possessed you to paint the walls of the Akatsuki base BRIGHT NEON COLORS?"

"Eh heh heh… shit."

Just before the other Akatsuki members went to attack Riz, they heard Itachi yell at her.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN IT'S CONNECTED TO YOUR CHAKRA?" They looked at the walls to see a few changing colors rapidly. Everyone requested a mission that night.

* * *

**_AHAHAHA! Hope you all liked it! Reviews are always more than welcome!_**


	10. 9:ANBU's a pain, so let's play

**_I hope everyone enjoyed the last chapter! I hope you like this one too! And if anyone finds any errors in this, please tell me and I'll try and change them!_**

**_For the reviewer marc, about the preface and why Riz had used Tsukiyomi twice, it was because she was still learning it and therefore needed some practice with it. And don't worry about it damaging her eyes, I'll cover things like that eventually, probably closer to the end of the story._**

* * *

"Ow! What the hell?" She shouted, falling off the bed again.

"Relaxed your guard?"

"I was asleep!"

"So?"

"It's my apartment!"

"Re-set your traps then."

"Bastard." He just sat on her bed.

"Did you not want to know what the Hokage wanted?"

"… You saw him all ready?"

"Yes."

"And?"

"Hm?"

"Tell me what he said!"

"Say please."

"_Please_." She hissed out.

"Orochimaru rubbed off on you." She growled and attacked him. She glanced at the clock and let go of him.

"Damn you Aniki! You made me late!" She jumped away and grabbed her stuff, heading for the door. Itachi shook his head and left.

Riz opened the door right after Iruka had finished taking roll and the kids immediately stopped talking when they saw her. Some glared.

"You're late."

"I realized. Did you want a quick excuse?"

"The truth."

"Forgot to wake up then." Iruka twitched.

"Fine. We're doing target training today. Since you were late, they get to practice on you."

"What? Are you trying to get me killed?"

"Okay class, we're going to go outside for target practice. Atsura is the target. If she doesn't manage to catch or block your attack and you hit her, I might not assign homework. Single file now!" The kids grinned and lined up, following their teacher outside. Riz watched them and sighed before following them.

"_This is turning out to be such a __**perfect**__ day."_

Iruka pointed to where she should stand and she grumbled, but went over there. She looked back at the kids and groaned. Every kid had come to class that day, and they were all armed with kunai and shuriken, and they were all grinning at her.

"Everyone has written their names on their kunai and shuriken. Begin!"

"Wait! They're all attacking me at once?" She dodged the first onslaught.

"Atsura! You're supposed to either be catching them or blocking them! You can't dodge them!"

"These hellions are throwing sharp pointy objects at me and you expect me to stay in the line of fire?"

"Yes." She stared at him for a minute before sighing.

"Stupid mission. Fine." The kids came and picked up their weapons. As one was passing her, she heard him say something.

"Revenge time." Her eye twitched.

"Begin!" They all began throwing at once. One of them hit the ground, creating a small cloud of dust. They all waited for the dust to clear and began complaining when it did.

"That's not fair!"

"How could no one have hit her?" Iruka tried not to laugh as Riz began to throw the weapons back. The kids ducked out of the way.

"Let's try that again. The dust cloud was a nice touch." Iruka nodded and the kids lined up again.

"I think it should be done with limited visibility. They know where I am, so they shouldn't need to completely see me."

"And how should we do that?"

"Smoke bombs?"

"Fine." Riz grinned as she set one off in front of her.

"Newer, longer lasting, and covers a wider area than the typical smoke bomb. Begin." By the time the smoke cleared, they had run out of weapons, even after borrowing Iruka's. Again, no one had hit her. Some had hit the ground in front of her, while others were off to the side. Riz smiled and tossed the weapons back as Iruka sighed.

"All right. I want a two-page essay about aim and weapons care on my desk when you walk in tomorrow! Dismissed!" The kids groaned and ran off. Riz laughed.

"We should do that again, but have them-"

"Enough. They can get extra credit if they train with you on their own time. Then you can do what you want."

"You don't seem in a good mood Dolphin-chan! What could be wrong? Did you have a rough night?" He glared at her.

"None of your business."

"I'm shocked Ruka! Geez, I just wanted to know how long you talked to her and what it was about. It couldn't have just been about me." He blushed.

"Go ask her if you want to know so badly."

"Don't worry, I will." She left him alone and went back to her apartment to take a nap. It was going to be a long night.

* * *

The rest of the week passed simply enough. She would get the occasional student out of class for some training, mainly on target practice. She was brutal with them, but Iruka began to see definite progress. On her last day he had her stay longer and help him clean up.

"What are you doing next?"

"I have to become an ANBU." Iruka chuckled.

"It's not funny! Stupid old man is making me!"

"How can he make you?"

"He knows who I am and blackmailed me." Iruka laughed at her.

"Well, have fun. I was thinking you should be a teacher, whether at the academy or of a squad, but as an ANBU…"

"Shut up!"

"You're gonna be an ANBU?" They both glanced up sharply.

"Konohamaru, it's going to, not gonna, and you're supposed to knock before coming in."

"Sorry sensei. I forgot my bag. Are you really going to become an ANBU? That's so cool!"

"No it's not!"

"Yes it is!"

"No it is not!" She smacked him.

"Ow! Then why are you gonna be one if you don't wanna?"

"Your grandfather is making me."

"Konohamaru! What did I say!"

"Sorry sensei!"

"If you came to get your bag, I'm sure it's not going to turn up while talking to Atsura." Iruka turned away and Konohamaru stuck his tongue out at his back. He was quickly smacked by the irate teacher. Riz smirked and handed his bag to him.

"Goodbye Konohamaru." She pushed him out.

"Close one."

"Obviously. You really think I would make a good teacher?"

"Well, maybe only of a squad. I don't want to know what their homework would be. And with the way you grade papers, the poor kids will be scarred for life."

"I'll start getting perfect papers though." Iruka laughed.

"Maybe, but at what cost?"

"What are you talking about? I'm fast enough to not have to pay!" He smacked her.

"You idiot!" She pouted and looked around the room before sighing.

"I have to go soon. Have to be a stupid ANBU."

"Good luck."

"Thanks. I'll need it." Iruka paused.

"You're actually worried."

"I never wanted to be one Ruka." He patted her head.

"It'll be fine. Now go, before you change your mind." She grinned and headed out.

"Now, what good would that do Dolphin-chan?"

* * *

Riz stood outside the Keikoku* Bathhouse, wondering why the hideaway couldn't still be in a bar.

"Come on. You do have to go in."

"Yo Makoto! Actually, I was just leaving."

"You're lying. Come on." He grabbed her arm and began to pull her inside.

"But I don't want to!" He ignored her and soon she was facing a room full of masks.

"This is her." He let her go and went farther into the room.

"Wha? Makoto!" She whined and pouted.

"And you're trying to become an ANBU. Have some pride."

"You shut it."

"Why should I?"

"I mean it. Don't mess with me."

"And just what are you going to do about it?" She just grinned.

"Oh, nothing. Nothing at all…" The guy kept smirking until she was behind him, her after-image fading as she grabbed his arm. Before anyone could stop her she had thrown him upwards and tied him to the ceiling. She was walking away by the time they started to get him down.

"Makoto? Hey, where'd you go?"

"… What did you do Atsura? I was gone for two minutes tops, and you've tied the commander to the ceiling. Care to explain?"

"No."

"She doesn't have to. She's never going to be an ANBU." The commander glared at her, "Now get out." He walked off and Riz shrugged.

"Fine by me, but you might want to explain to the Hokage why. He _is_ the one that ordered me here after all." She waved as she left the bathhouse and headed to Iruka's. She had just knocked when Makoto appeared behind her. She sighed before smiling sweetly and turning to him.

"Did you need something?"

"Hokage wants to see you. Come on."

"I can't leave just yet, it would be rude! I have all ready knocked on Rukie's door after all. I'll be there in about an hour, bye!" She brushed past Iruka and shut the door. Iruka glared at her.

"Rukie? And you should go see the Hokage if he's summoned you!"

"But I don't want to! He's just going to have me and the ANBU captain try and get along so I can be in, and I won't even have a chance to ask what he and everyone's favorite weasel talked about!" Iruka sighed.

"You're going later then, if I have to drag you myself. And why do you keep changing my name?" She hugged him.

"Thanks Rukie! You're name is fun to mess with, that's all."

"Stop it! My name's Iruka!"

"Now now Ru-ru, don't you think I know that?"

"Apparently not! And where did Ru-ru come from?" She began to lead him to the couch.

"I think you're over-reacting. Too much stress lately? Come on, tell…" she picked up a slip of paper, "Mr. Paper how you feel!" Iruka's eye twitched as he grabbed the paper and shredded it.

"Mr. Paper is dead."

"I see." She grabbed another one, "But you have yet to tell him what's wrong." Iruka glared at the paper before sighing.

"Fine. You are. You're what's wrong." She froze and he continued, "All these games, acting like almost nothing has changed, and all the secrets? I'm sick of it. I'm sorry Riz, but I can't do it anymore. I almost would rather have not known it was you. It's selfish, but I hate keeping this from everyone, especially when you act like pretty much the same Uchiha as you were about four years ago! Especially when you're not. You may try to act the same, but you're not. You've changed a lot, and try to carry all of the world's problems by yourself. That's the real reason you broke up with Kakashi-sensei, isn't it? You felt like you had to protect him from everything, including yourself." Riz put the paper back down and refused to meet his eyes.

"Stupid paper… doesn't know anything… can't even come up with anything…" Iruka hugged her as soon as he realized she was crying.

"Shh, it's ok. I'm sorry. Everything's going to be fine."

"I don't know what you're talking about. It's not like I'm crying or anything!" She started to pull away from him.

"Don't lie to me Riz. You're the one that keeps telling people it's ok to cry. You should take some of your own advise." She shook her head.

"I'm sorry. I just keep bothering you, ne?" She looked up and smiled that sad smile. Iruka smiled back slightly and picked up the paper she had abandoned.

"Well, I shared, but what about you?" She looked at the paper.

"Mr. Paper is only authorized for therapy for those that have far smaller, and most likely more easily fixed, problems. Definitely not for someone that betrayed their village, joined a group she despised, came back to said village under a different alias, see how people missed her and some to have almost never gotten over it, had assisted in the murder of her entire clan, and then has to watch her younger brother never be happy because of it and devote his life to revenge against their older brother, and watch said older brother slowly die from disease. Sorry Mr. Paper." They both stared at the paper for a minute before Iruka sighed and shifted. Riz automatically moved over to let him up.

"I'm going to get some coffee. You want me to make you some tea?" She stretched out on the couch and stared blankly at the ceiling.

"Please. I think I'm going to stop drinking, it never helped anyway." Iruka laughed and brought out the drinks, sitting in the chair across from her. He had just finished his cup when there was a knock on his door. Iruka went to answer it and Riz listened silently.

"Hello? Lord Hokage? What brings you here?"

"Is Atsura here?"

"Yes, would you like to come in?"

"Thank you. This is the ANBU captain."

"Nice to meet you. Atsura's in the living room, just down the hall." Riz groaned and flopped back down on the couch, flinging her arm across her head.

"I heard you fought with the ANBU captain."

"Correction, I tied the ANBU captain to the ceiling and left. No harm, no fight."

"You need to try and get along. He is going to be your captain."

"Again, I don't see the point. Obviously we do not get along and so there is no solid teamwork applied. Another wonderful reason I should not be an ANBU."

"I'm sure you'll find a way to make it work."

"If there is no trust within a team, that team falls apart."

"Then try to trust him."

"I'm not really the problem. I trust him to do his job, but he can't trust me." She glanced up at them, "Now can he?"

"Fine then. Truth leads to trust. Riz, meet Wei Shin." He paused as Riz glared at him, "Shin, meet…"

"Don't you dare!"

"Uchiha Riz." She glared at him as Shin turned to look at him.

"Sir, the Uchiha clan is dead except for Sasuke and Itachi."

"And Riz." She flopped back down on the couch, covering her head again. Shin was silent.

"So, you're telling me that Uchiha Riz never died, left for four years, and then comes back to the village under false pretenses, and you're okay with that? Lord Hokage, I think you need to get some rest."

"Yes. It doesn't bother me at all. If you need proof, you could always ask her brother."

"Uchiha Itachi is a criminal sir. If he was in the village…"

"Outside the window?" There was a tense silence.

"Riz, go get him."

"What? Are you planning a party or something? Seriously? Three Akatsuki members, you, the ANBU captain, Ruka, and myself all get to party at Iruka's!"

"Three?"

"Itachi, Kisame, and Konan." Iruka blushed slightly as the Hokage looked at him.

"Do you mind?"

"No, of course not." He looked back at Riz, who was peeking at him from under her arm.

"Well?" She groaned and got up, heading towards the window. She stuck her head out and looked up.

"Come on in then. Old man's orders. That includes all three of you!" There was a pause before she sighed and disappeared.

"Ruka, I might have to fix your roof later!" A second later Itachi and Kisame climbed through the window. Konan came in through the door.

"Street's empty." Riz clambered back in and pouted.

"Happy now? Ita-chan, Sushi-chan, Paper-chan, this is Wei Shin. Shin, meet Itachi, Kisame, and Konan. Everyone happy now? Good, I'm leaving." Konan grabbed her.

"This is your Hokage?"

"Yes."

"And ANBU captain?"

"Yes."

"He's not very good."

"I know that. I'm in this mess because of that. He couldn't even stop me from tying him to the ceiling. Well, now that everyone's here, I'm hungry. Ruka, do you mind if I use your kitchen? You can help." He nodded and followed her.

"Is it a good idea to leave them all there?"

"Probably not, but I'm really only worried about how Shin is going to react. I trust everyone else."

"Let's hope my house doesn't get destroyed."

"Let's hope no one comes to visit." Iruka paused as his eyes widened.

"Who is it?"

"Naruto."

"Great." She went back out.

"As lovely as this is, we need to leave. Naru-chan's on his way here, and I know this isn't going to be something he'll just ignore. If you don't mind, we could continue this at my apartment, or sneak into the Uchiha complex."

"Or we leave." Itachi and Kisame disappeared quickly and Konan walked farther into the house.

"We'll be going then. Riz, you need to report to Shin at seven tomorrow so they can assess what type of missions you'll be sent out for most often." Riz sighed as they too, disappeared. A moment later and Naruto was opening the door.

"Iruka-sensei! I'm here! Hey Atsura!"

"Naruto, you need to knock!"

"Oops, I forgot." Riz rolled her eyes.

"Well, I better get going. Tomorrow's going to be hell."

"Why's that? I know! You're going on some super-cool mission! Am I right? I wanna go!" She pushed him away.

"Wrong, and even if I was, you wouldn't be joining me."

"Why not?"

"Because it would've been assigned to me, not you. And I have to go through testing, training, and whatever else they decide to put me through."

"What for?"

"I'm an ANBU now apparently, and they need to know how strong I am, and what type of missions I would be most suited for."

"You're an ANBU? That's so cool! From now on, I'm going to focus on trying to beat you! Since you're an ANBU all ready, you must be real good, so if I beat you I'll be way closer to becoming Hokage!"

"Good luck with that." She disappeared, but not fast enough to miss what he said next.

"Iruka-sensei! Teach me that!" She was chuckling as she entered her apartment, only to be stopped by Guy.

"There you are! I have been looking for you!"

"Lucky me."

"I have come to help you train in taijutsu with a blindfold on! This wonderful idea came to me while training my team and I saw Neji wearing your ring! So let's head out now!" He grabbed her arm and began to drag her away.

"Please say this isn't going to take long!"

"That depends on you! With your Youth it should take only a day, no, half a day!" Riz groaned and gave up trying to stop him. They were soon at the training grounds.

"Lee! Such wonderful timing! You shall help Atsura here train in taijutsu while wearing a blindfold!"

"Yes sir! I shall wear a blindfold as well!"

"No Lee! You must attack her while she is wearing a blindfold!"

"Yes sir!"

"Sorry to interrupt, but I lost that fight because Neji could use jutsu, and had the byakuugan and that rotation technique."

"You will spar with Lee until you have the hang of it, and then we shall spar!"

"You're not listening! …Wait, Neji has been wearing my ring?"

"Yes! Every day!"

"Guy! What if Hiashi sees that?"

"Then he's sees a wonderful ring that had belonged to-!"

"Me." He paused.

"That's right! We must get that ring back from Neji! So we must train! Lee!"

"Yes Sir!"

"Begin!" Riz twitched and smacked him.

"First of all, I never said I wanted to train, I could get that ring back easily. Second, the training was blindfolded idiot!"

"Right. And here is a blindfold!" He tied it around her head before she objected. "Begin!"

"What?" Lee hit her hard in the stomach, shouting something about Leaf Hurricane and then ran after her. She groaned and focused on finding him. She barely dodged his next attack and twisted around as he passed her, grabbing his leg and throwing him to the ground.

"How troublesome… Stop." Everyone froze and Riz took the blindfold off to find Shikamaru standing there.

"Did you need something Laze-chan?"

"Wanted to ask you something actually."

"And what would that be?"

"Somewhere else preferably." She tilted her head.

"All right. I'll be back, maybe." She followed Shikamaru silently for a minute until they were out of ear-shot.

"Well? What did you need?" He shrugged.

"I want to know who you are."

"What do you mean? I'm Atsura, remember?"

"Is that so? That's not what I thought."

"What did you think?" He stared at the clouds for a minute.

"An Uchiha." She stared at him.

"Really? Well, I'm not sure whether or not to take that as a complement. Why did you think that?"

"How you act."

"Wait, so I act like Sasu-chan?"

"No. You act like his older sister." She tilted her head.

"And how would you know that?" He shrugged.

"Troublesome. It doesn't matter anyway, _Atsura_." He began to walk away.

"Shikamaru… If you believe me to be his sister, why did you come and ask me and not inform the Hokage."

"Too troublesome." She smirked.

"Right, not that it would do much good to tell him anyway. He all ready knows after all. Later Laze-chan!" She somersaulted and disappeared. Shikamaru just shrugged and kept walking.

"Guess I was right."

* * *

Riz groaned and jumped into the lake to get away from Guy. She was still wearing the blindfold and, as much as she hated to admit, she was improving. Guy suddenly grabbed her leg and threw her out of the water, making her hit a tree. He shouted something and she was flying through the air again. She twisted and landed in a tree. She went silent and focused on locating him. She jumped out at him just before he did another jutsu, tackling him to the ground and pinning him there.

"Wonderful Job!" She ripped off the blindfold and grinned as she got off him.

"Yeah. Thanks."

"Anytime! We shall train together again soon yes?" She stretched.

"Sure. Later then, I need to find Neji, if only to ask him to not let Hiashi see my ring." She waved and headed off to find the byakugan user. She eventually found him walking out of the Hyuuga complex.

"Yo! Neji!"

"Atsura. Did you need something?"

"I wanted to talk to you about the ring." He smirked.

"Come to beg for it back?" She twitched.

"No, Mr. high and mighty, I came to ask you not to wear it while you are anywhere near Hiashi, also I would love to challenge you again."

"No."

"No to what?"

"A re-match. The ring is mine."

"Don't make me steal it back."

"Try it then. I'll show Lord Hiashi it, since you seem intent on not letting him see it."

"…Watch it Neji. One day that attitude of yours is going to get shoved back into your face." She turned and stormed back to her apartment. Once there she flung herself onto the bed and disabled all her traps.

"_Let someone attack me, I dare them."_ With that thought in mind, she fell asleep.

* * *

Deidara laughed as Riz flopped down onto his bed.

"Maybe you shouldn't have painted the walls, un." She threw a pillow at him.

"Shut it. I can find places this way."

"Why don't you just take the paint off? It can't be that hard to find your way around, un."

"Yes it can! Everything looks the exact same here and I don't want to have to constantly use the sharingan just to find my way!" Deidara laughed again as Sasori came in.

"Why those colors?"

"What I had. Besides, I like most of those colors."

"Take it off."

"No."

"Follow people around to not get lost if you must."

"As wonderful as that idea is, it's not that simple. I don't know how to take the paint off without killing myself. It should fade eventually." They both stared at her.

"Why?"

"Why don't I know? Because I made the damn thing up and never had a chance to try. It's directly connected to my chakra and if that gets cut off, then the color will disappear. And since I'm not going to die to get your precious look-alike dreary walls back, you get to be stuck with them until they fade on their own!" She flipped over and got up, running out of the room. The two sighed and went after her. They eventually found her outside at the lake.

"Riz! What're you doing, un?" They began to walk to her, but jumped back when she opened an eye and set some trees on fire; black fire that didn't seem affected by the rain. She used her other eye to put it out.

"What was that?" She glanced at them and deactivated the sharingan.

"Training. Sorry for blowing up at you two like that, but Aniki has been angry with me lately and I've been getting sick of everyone yelling at me. Did you two come after me?"

"Yes." She smiled.

"Thanks. Sorry if I worried you." Sasori nodded and began to walk back inside. Deidara went over to her.

"What were those flames?"

"The amaterasu. It's an ocular jutsu unique to the sharingan. I've been trying to practice it and advance my eyes, but I still run out of chakra too quickly and I don't seem to be getting any better."

"You just lit something on fire by looking at it, un."

"Yeah, but I've been able to do that for a while. Anyhow, let's get back inside. I don't want to miss lunch again!" They headed inside and were almost there when Konan stopped them.

"Riz, you have a mission."

"What? Really? What is it?"

"Follow me and we'll go over it with your partner."

"What? I don't want to go on a mission with him!"

"Hurry up." Riz pouted as she followed her.

"I haven't even had lunch yet!"

* * *

She woke slowly to someone laying next to her and jumped up. The man beside her shifted and blinked at her.

"Don't move so much, it's hard to sleep." He mumbled.

"What are you doing here?"

"I was passing by and decided to visit un! Sasori did too."

"… Sasori's here too?"

"Yeah, he's in the living room. Got mad at me for lying next to you, but you're the one who disabled all the traps, so I figured you wouldn't really mind, un." Riz groaned and flopped back down next to him.

"You guys know you shouldn't be here, right?"

"Why not? We're not doing anything wrong, un!" Riz threw a pillow at him.

"Quiet! And it doesn't matter, if anyone finds you here you're dead!"

"We can handle them, un!"

"That's not the point. I wouldn't let you harm them anyway." Deidara threw the pillow back.

"Then it would be your fault, un!"

"Quiet Deidara." They both looked up.

"Sori-chan!" Riz jumped on him and hugged him.

"Hey! I didn't get a hug, un!"

"Probably because you were in her bed and loud. Let go Riz." She pouted.

"You're no fun. I haven't seen you in almost a year now, and you won't even hug me?"

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

"I'll hug you, un!" Riz glared at him.

"No. You're the one that snuck into my bed."

"At least your boyfriend didn't see, un!"

"I don't have a boyfriend idiot."

"You don't? What happened to him?"

"Broke up obviously. What else?"

"Why?"

"Are you really that interested Sori-chan?" He didn't answer her.

"I wanna know, un!"

"Didn't we tell you to shut up? It just wasn't working out, ok?" Sasori shrugged and left the room again. Riz and Deidara followed him.

"So why did you two decide to come visit me?"

"No reason."

"Liar, you always have a reason."

"I told you, we were nearby and decided to-"

"Shut it. I want to know the real reason."

"That is the reason."

"Yeah! We were worried about you, un!"

"Worried? Why?"

"Overheard Itachi saying people knew about you." She smiled.

"Yeah, but they're fine with it." She frowned, "Sasori, Deidara… Are you two going to attack Konoha after more bijuu are collected? Along with the rest of the Akatsuki?"

"That is the plan."

"Right… I'm going back to bed now. Later…" She flopped back down on the bed and tried to ignore them. Deidara climbed back into the bed next to her.

"We weren't going to attack you, un."

"Does it matter? I'll be fighting for Konoha no matter what." She laughed dryly, "I guess that makes us enemies." It was silent for a while.

"… I'll fight with you, un." Riz shot up and stared at him.

"What?" He grinned.

"I'll be on your side. I don't want to fight against you anyway, un."

"And just how are you going to manage that? They'll find out and you'll be caught. They will kill you Deidara."

"I'll show them a bang, un!"

"Quiet!" she hissed out.

"We'll be fine Riz."

"We?"

"I won't attack you either." Riz just stared at the two of them.

"You two are crazy." She shook her head, but smiled regardless, "Thanks."

"We just have to make sure no one finds out, un!" Riz began to reply when Deidara covered her mouth with his hand.

"Someone's there…" he whispered. Riz didn't move and Sasori and Deidara watched the window and door. Sasori relaxed first and looked back to see a bright red Riz and Deidara still covering her mouth.

"Deidara… What are you doing?"

"What are you talking about, un? I was being quiet!" Sasori pointed to Riz.

"You have mouths on your hands Deidara. Did you forget?" Deidara froze before slowly turning and gently pulling his hand away.

"Oops, sorry about that-"

"KYAA!" She shoved him away from her, making him land on the wall. Sasori went and grabbed him.

"We're leaving now." They disappeared moments before someone appeared in the window while another came in through the door.

"What is going on here?"

"Makoto?"

"Why did you scream?" She paused.

"Sorry, I had fallen off my bed onto some kunai. It shocked me awake and I screamed. I guess I had forgotten the room wasn't sound-proofed." She smiled apologetically.

"You're not wounded."

"I healed myself all ready. They weren't that deep. I'll make sure to sound-proof the room again, okay?" The ANBU in the window nodded and left. Makoto looked at her skeptically.

"Why don't I believe you?" She shrugged and laid back down.

"Beats me."

"Don't forget to meet Shin at seven." She waved him off.

"Don't worry about me." He glanced at her cautiously again before leaving. Riz sighed before turning back over and closing her eyes.

She woke up at seven the next morning. She just stared at the clock for a minute before she realized she was late. She shrugged and padded off to take a shower. A nice, long shower. She was toweling off when there was knocking on the door.

"It's open!" She called with a yawn. Shin and Makoto entered and glared at her.

"You're late."

"No I'm not. I can't be called late until I actually get there. I am becoming late right now."

"You were supposed to meet me at seven. It is now eight-thirty." She ignored him and went into the kitchen to make breakfast.

"Are you hungry Makoto? I can make you something."

"No, thank you."

"Got it, not going to accept with the captain right there. I'll make you something anyway. Shin too."

"You have no time to do that. Follow me."

"No. Maybe you don't understand this, but I never wanted to be an ANBU, never have, never will. So I am not going to automatically follow your orders, and I am certainly not going to skip a meal for it. I've skipped enough meals in the past thank you very much." She began to rummage through the fridge. Shin grabbed her arm and began to pull her away. She glared at her arm and quickly stabbed his hand. He pulled the kunai out and threw it at her, automatically getting into a defensive stance. She started to get into an attack position when she realized what he was doing and growled.

"I am not going to prove myself to you in my apartment! If you want to test me then you will have to wait! Now get out!" She did a wind jutsu and pulled a wire to open the door just before both Shin and Makoto flew out. She glared at the door before turning and punching the wall separating the kitchen from the living room. She sighed and grabbed a can of milk before heading out the door.

They had her spar with a few of the other ANBU, retrieve well hidden objects, infiltrate heavily guarded area with the "guards" on high-alert, escort someone that was seemingly useless into enemy territory, before finally torturing her to see if she would disclose any information to them. By the end of the day, Riz was exhausted and saying she was irritated was an understatement. Instead of heading straight to bed, she wrote some notes and left them on a few doors. Twenty-one doors later and she flopped onto the bed with a smirk, anticipating the morning.

* * *

Itachi woke up to someone dropping into the bed next to him and a small smile tugged at his lips.

"You're back." She nodded slightly and shifted closer.

"That difficult?" She shook her head.

"No, not really. It was working with that snake that was difficult." Itachi chuckled.

"He couldn't have been that bad."

"He tried molesting me multiple times and slithered into my tent when I was asleep to get into my sleeping bag." Itachi stiffened.

"Did he now?" She smirked.

"Don't even. I doubt he'll ever try that again. Besides, I need him for my plan tomorrow."

"Plan?" She laughed.

"You'll see." She left and went to find Pein.

"Yo! Coon-eyes!" He turned and glared at her.

"What do you want?"

"I thought I would actually involve you in a game I'm going to play with everyone tomorrow."

"No." She smirked.

"So you like my colorful walls then?" His glare worsened.

"No."

"If you and everyone else play, then I will try my best to figure out a way to remove the paint, or at least fade the colors some."

"… And just what is this game?" She grinned as she began to explain it to him.

As soon as everyone woke up they were called into a meeting. As usual, Riz didn't go. She just waited in what could be called the living room. Her grin grew as everyone appeared there one-by-one, each with different levels of shock on their faces.

"Well? Sit down at a piece of paper and write your name on it. Hurry up or I'll add a new rule to the game."

"And what rule would that be?"

"Since I'm sure Coon-eyes told you the traditional rules, the added one would be you would have to kiss, and a good kiss at that, whoever you go into the closet with." She smirked as everyone sat down and wrote their names. She passed around a jar to put the slips in and counted them to make sure all eleven were there, including hers.

"Wonderful, now I'm going to call each of you over here to pick a name. I'll be watching to make sure you don't cheat, and if you pick yourself you will have to choose again. Okay? Good." She activated her sharingan, "Sori-chan?" He walked slowly up and grabbed a paper quickly. Looking at it briefly to make sure it wasn't him. His eyes narrowed at Riz as he sat down. This process repeated for almost everyone when she called their name.

"Clay-chan. Aniki. Sushi-chan. Paper-chan. Hidan. Zetsu. Snake. Kakuzu. Coon-eyes. And me!" She pulled out the last paper and tilted her head before shrugging. Okay! Sori-chan, you're first!" Sasori walked into the closet as he read the name.

"Kakuzu." Everyone watched Kakuzu shake his head.

"I quit."

"I'll give you 500 Ryo." Kakuzu got up and follow Sasori into the closet. The door clicked shut and the pair heard a lock slide into place and a buzz of chakra seal them in.

_**Note: 100 Ryo is now equal to $1**_

They stared at each other for the entire seven minutes. The door opened and they walked back to their seats and sat down calmly, making Riz frown. She quickly cheered as she called the next name.

"Clay-chan!" He shot a glance at Riz as he read his paper.

"Itachi." Itachi glared at Riz and she smiled.

"Go on." He got up and stalked into the closet, Deidara following closely behind him. Itachi didn't even bother looking at Deidara for the seven minutes. He just closed his eyes and leaned against the wall until the door opened. Riz was pouting by the time they sat back down.

"Your turn Aniki, back into the closet with you."

"Leader." He went back into the closet and leaned against the wall again. Pein followed him silently and did the same as the door closed. Riz just glared at them when they got back out. She went into the kitchen and brought out sake for everyone, nearly forcing it down some of their throats.

"Hopefully that makes it more interesting. Sushi-chan, you're up."

"… Zetsu." The plant man walked into the closet and grinned while waiting for Kisame.

"You are not allowed to eat him!" Riz shouted as the door closed. As soon as the door opened Kisame jumped out and sat back in his spot. Zetsu following soon after.

"Paper-chan?" she walked into the closet.

"Sasori." He calmly followed her and after seven minutes of silence, they came out and sat back down.

"Hidan?"

"I got f***ing Kisame!" she stomped to the closet and waited as Kisame sighed and followed him. Everyone heard Hidan bragging about Jashin and explaining why Kisame should worship him as well. They heard a thud just before the door opened and Kisame walked out. Hidan followed while glaring.

"Okay… Zetsu?"

"Orochimaru." The snake-man paled, but followed Zetsu in anyway. Seven minutes later and they came out and sat down silently.

"Snake-man, don't bother sitting down, you're next."

"Konan…" He hissed out, licking his lips. She walked calmly into the closet and he followed. There was some shuffling noises and a rustle of paper before the door opened and Konan stalked out, followed by Orochimaru, now sporting some new cuts. Riz smiled.

"Kakuzu."

"Deidara, and I want an extra 500 Ryo for this."

"Only if something interesting happens."

"1,000 Ryo for that."

"750."

"1,000 or nothing."

"Look, you're going into that closet one way or another. Either you can get 750 Ryo for something interesting, or nothing happens and you get nothing. Make your choice." He didn't move and Riz launched herself at him, throwing both him and Deidara into the closet and shutting the door. Deidara just stared at him before being pushed against the walls and roughly kissed. He tried to push the greedy man away, but to no avail. The door opened and Kakuzu pulled away before going up to a madly grinning Riz to collect his money. Deidara stood there in shock as she went up and pulled him out while laughing.

"Okay! Coon-eyes!"

"You." She blinked before smiling.

"Well? Are you coming or not?" She jumped backwards into the closet and waited for him to slowly make his way over. The door closed and he didn't move. Two minutes later and she pouted.

"Well? Are you going to do anything? At all?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"I refuse to." Another minute or two and she smirked.

"Fine then, I will."

"What?" She leaned up and kissed him before he could say anything else. A minute later she pulled back and laughed at the look on his face. The door opened a minute later and Pein rushed out and sat down. She grinned.

"My turn anyway! I got Hidan!"

"F*** that!"

"Too damn bad! What are you? Scared?"

"Fine!" He stomped in there and the door closed. After a minute he began to try and convince her about how wonderful Jashin is. She banged her head back against the wall and groaned. After about four minutes of this she grabbed him and pulled him down to kiss him. A minute or so later and she let him go and smirked.

"Finally got you to shut up." The door opened and they both stepped out. Hidan speechless for once. She rolled her eyes and waved people off.

"Okay, you can go now. I know this has been just complete torture for all of you." Most of them disappeared instantly. Itachi and Kisame stayed behind.

"What?"

"You kissed them?"

"So? No one else did anything fun except for Kakuzu, and I had to pay him!"

"You kissed them." Itachi glared.

"Would it make you feel better if I said they didn't kiss me back?"

"No."

"Damn. I'm going to go work on the walls now." She ran off before Itachi could comment any further on the issue.

* * *

**_I hope everyone enjoyed the chapter! Don't forget to review!_**


	11. 10:Game on before the mission

**Hello Everyone! I actually am still working on this story, isn't it lovely? And this update and the next one is all thanks to ItsGayLove for reviewing lately and reviewing on other stories of mine. Enjoy!**

* * *

Riz woke to pounding on her door and glared before shouting at them to shut up and just come in. She covered her head with a blanket as they came into the room.

"A game? This is such a wonderful expression of Youth! So much so that we could not contain our joy and decided to come to try and convince you to begin such a Youthful experience sooner than five tonight!"

"No! I wasn't even planning on getting up until then! Now get out! I'm sleeping!"

"But you are speaking with us! Which shows you are awake and ready to begin this Youthful day!" Riz twitched.

"OUT!" She screamed at them while throwing the nearest large object, which happened to be the nightstand, at the spandex-wearing, wake-people-up-way-too-early-in-the-morning, pair. The group of people that were about to go ask her about the invites stopped when Gai and Lee crashed into the wall next to them in a pile of rubble and broken wood, thankful that they weren't the ones to wake her.

"We'll just talk to her later…" Everyone but Makoto and Shin left. Shin smirked and walked into her kitchen with a bucket.

"Sir, what are you doing?"

"You might want to leave Makoto." Makoto shook his head and followed his captain into Riz's room.

"If I did that, you might end up dead." They lowered their voices.

"I could easily make it out of here. I _am_ the ANBU captain. You seem to think she could best me." Makoto didn't answer, opting to stand against the wall instead as Shin quickly dumped the bucket of water on the spot where she _used_ to be. Shin didn't move as she pressed a kunai to his throat. Killer intent radiated off every inch of her skin.

"In _case_ you didn't get the message when I threw the last two out, I don't like to be woken up when I don't have to, and I _will_ attack you!" She threw him through the wall and out into the hallway, "Now get out and leave me alone!" She glared at the retreating figures and teleported herself into Iruka's house.

"Ruka! I'm sleeping here today!" She called before climbing into his bed and quickly falling asleep. Iruka walked back into his bedroom and shook his head, before he finished getting dressed and walking out of his house.

"I'll be back later."

Riz woke at one to Iruka walking back into the house. She blinked sleepily up at him and yawned before smiling.

"G'morning Ruka…" Iruka smiled.

"It's afternoon Riz." She tilted her head and smiled apologetically.

"Sorry for stealing your bed all day."

"It's fine. Come on, breakfast."

"Lunch Ruka, you said it was afternoon!"

"Brunch then." She grinned and hopped up, following after him like a puppy.

"I can cook Ruka!" He shook his head.

"No thanks, I'm fine Riz. Go sit down." She pouted slightly but went to sit down anyway.

"I can almost hear you pouting Riz." She laughed and hugged him. He twisted away.

"I'm trying to cook here!"

"Come on Ruka, be nice! I could just tickle you…" She smirked.

"Sometimes I feel like I'm back in the classroom when I'm with you." She rolled her eyes.

"Sure Ruka, except for the fact that I'm a higher rank then you and everything, ne?" He laughed and tossed the spoon at her.

"I still wonder why they think you have enough mental stability to be a higher rank!"

"I've wondered that myself actually." She grinned, "But then again, somehow Kakashi had gotten into a higher rank too. Someone had to have been completely smashed when they went over him."

"Or maybe he was actually better then." She shrugged.

"Maybe. I'm eating now." Iruka rolled his eyes and walked away.

"You had better hurry up, you'll need to set things up for this game of yours."

"Right! You are coming, ne?"

"You didn't really give anyone a choice, now did you?" She laughed.

"I guess not." She finished eating quickly and ran back to her apartment, eying the broken wall in amusement before sighing.

"I should probably fix that first."

She arrived at the training grounds just before five to see that everyone was all ready there, even though most of them didn't look too happy about it. She grinned and passed out slips of paper for everyone to write their names on and then placed a jar on either side of her, one pink, and one blue.

"Okay everyone, put your paper in one of the jars, depending on gender. She watched them all slowly place the papers in a jar before sitting down and watching her.

"For those of you not familiar with the rules, it's simple. Just draw a name out of one of the jars, read it aloud and put it back. Then you and whoever's name you pulled will go into that closet type room for seven minutes to see if anything interesting happens. There will be no byakugan or sharingan allowed in this game, so don't even try it. I have it rigged so I'll know and if you do, then I get to come up with a penalty for you. Okay? Good. I think Ruka should go first!"

"What? Why me?"

"Because I said so. Come on now, don't be shy." She help up the girl's jar for him to pick from. He quickly reached in and snatched one, reading it quickly before putting it back and walking into the closet blushing.

"Ayame." The door shut after she went in and they just stood there for a minute staring at each other.

"So, how have you been Ayame?"

"Fine, you? I haven't seen you or Naruto at Ichiraku's lately."

"I'm fine. I guess not huh? We've been busy. His team is supposed to be getting a mission soon."

"Really? Is it another D-rank?"

"I hope not, but it will probably be a C-rank at best." She laughed.

"I can all ready hear him complaining about it."

"Yeah, we're never going to hear the end about how he always gets stuck with low-ranked missions." They chatted a bit more before the door opened and they went to sit back down.

"Next up, Kakashi!" He grabbed one and read it before casually strolling into the closet.

"Hinata." The girl blushed and stammered out a "What?" before being pushed into the closet after the jounin. Kakashi just pulled out his book, lifting up his hitai-ai to read it.

"U-m, we're not s-supposed to use the b-byakugan or sh-sharingan." He ignore her and the door was flung open as Riz pulled Hinata out and shoved Gai in before taking the book and shutting the closet again.

"I told you no sharingan!"

"Ah! My Eternal Rival Kakashi! What a joy it is to share this Youthful time with you!" Kakashi paled and tried to open the door only to find out Riz had sealed it.

"NO!" Riz smirked as everyone turned to her in shock. Seven minutes later of listening to Kakashi bang his head against the wall and Gai going on about how unyouthful it was and how they should really enjoy this time spent together in the springtime of their youth, the door opened and Kakashi tried to leave before being pulled back by Riz and forced to stay for the remainder of the game.

"Gai, pick a name and go back in there!" She almost sang out, entirely too happy to be safe for everyone sitting down. Gai ran over and picked a slip of paper, calling it out joyfully and heading back into the closet.

"Ino!" She paled, but followed him in anyway. The door closed and they heard Gai lecturing on youth again before there was a thud and then silence. The door opened and Ino came back out and sat down. Riz went in and collected Gai, taking the flowers off of him and helping him to sit down.

"I guess I forgot to mention that you can't attack them!" Ino shrugged.

"It was better than listening to all of that again!" Riz just shook her head and pointed to Naruto.

"Your turn Naru-chan!" He bounced up and grabbed a paper.

"Hinata?" He looked over to her and she blushed bright red.

"Into the closet you two! And don't forget, the main point of the game, although it hasn't happened yet, is to at least kiss!" Riz pushed them in and shut the door happily before going to extract the poison from Gai. Naruto grinned at the bright red Hinata.

"Wait, are you okay? You seem hot." Her eyes just widened and she shook her head.

"I-I'm f-fine." Naruto grinned again.

"Well, Atsura did say the point was to kiss." He leaned forward and kissed her, making her freeze. She unconsciously kissed him back. When she realized what was happening though, she instantly fainted.

"Ah! Hinata? Are you okay!" The door opened and Riz grabbed the unconscious girl and pulled her out while grinning madly.

"Well, that was fun, ne?" Naruto just looked between Hinata and Riz.

"Is she going to be okay? Did I do something?"

"No Naru-chan! You're perfectly fine! Go sit down, she'll be all right in a minute or so. Sasu-chan, you're up!"

"No."

"Refusal to play gains a penalty. Now, what should yours be?" She smirked when he got up and grabbed a paper before glaring at it.

"You." She froze, nearly dropping Hinata before she gently put her down and smiled.

"Well, into the closet then." She looked back to see Kakashi trying desperately not to laugh and Sakura and Ino glaring at her.

"You made sure he picked you! You just wanted to be alone with him!" Riz rolled her eyes, but didn't bother to argue with the girls. After all, saying she wasn't into incest would probably raise some interesting questions. Sasuke glared and walked into the closet after her. The door shut behind them and Sasuke continued to glare at her. She tilted her head and smiled at him.

"I'm not going to bite you Sasu-chan. I'm not even going to kiss you." He just continued to glare at her and press himself farther against the wall. Her look became softer and she hugged him, whispering in his ear.

"I wish you wouldn't hate me so much." He just stiffened and tried to push her off. She let him go and stood against the wall. Her face settling into the common Uchiha mask for the rest of the time as she watched him. She tilted her head and smiled just before the door opened.

"Poor Sasu-chan is scared of me!" She nearly danced out of the closet and sat back down. Sasuke glared at everyone and sat as far from her as possible, the slightest confusion on his face.

"Okay! Next up is Hina-chan!" She ignored Kakashi's, Iruka's, and Gai's slightly worried looks and help the jar up for the now-awake Hinata. She shyly reached in and pulled out a name.

"M-Makoto." Makoto looked up in surprise and followed her into the closet. Seven minutes of awkward silence passed and the door opened to let them out.

"It's a good thing I wasn't expecting anything to happen. Pink-chan?" Sakura grabbed her paper while still glaring at Riz. She paled when she read the name.

"Gai." Riz burst out laughing. The girl walked into the closet like it was the last thing she would ever do. Gai followed her happily. The door closed and Gai instantly started on how wonderful it was to be in there with her. Soon, he began to talk about how wonderful Lee was and how she should take a hold of her youth and date him.

"Well, while we're waiting for Sakura to hit him, you're next to pick Pup-chan."

"Finally!" He jumped up and grabbed the first paper he could.

"Ayame!"

"Again?" Riz nodded.

"Well, I would much rather have you two in there than listening to any more of Gai's speech to Sakura, so how about we let them out early?" She got up and opened the door, standing aside as Sakura calmly walked back and sat next to Sasuke closer than before and glaring a challenge at Riz. Riz smirked back and let Kiba and Ayame through. The door clicked shut on a grinning Kiba. Seven minutes later revealed a blushing Ayame and a grinning Kiba. Riz perked up and smiled at that.

"Great! Next up is Bug-chan!" He calmly grabbed a paper, read it, and walked into the closet to wait.

"Hinata." Riz smiled.

"Well, aren't you the popular one today." Hinata blushed and walked into the closet. Riz stretched as the door shut.

"Well, I'm going to go get something to eat. Anyone else want something?" Some people nodded and Riz headed off.

"Ruka, you want to come? Oh, and if they get out before I come back, Ino is up next. Gai, make sure no one cheats!" Iruka got up and followed her to the store. They got back with a few bags full of snacks as Ino and Makoto came out of the closet.

"Oh! You picked Makoto Flower-chan? How fun!" She smiled as they sat back down, "Looks like we got back just in time. Ano… It's Laze-chan's turn!" He grabbed a paper.

"Troublesome… Ayame." He strolled into the closet and waited.

"Wow Ayame, you should feel so loved!" Riz laughed and Ayame walked into the closet and greeted Shikamaru.

"Can we go ahead and pick the next one while waiting?"

"Sure. Choji's next." He finished his snack and grabbed a paper.

"Sakura." Shikamaru and Ayame came out a moment later and Choji followed Sakura in. Riz had Tenten pick while waiting.

"Ten-chan's next!"

"All right. I got… Naruto!" Riz smiled and went to open the door. Sakura was leaning against the wall thinking, and Shikamaru was half-asleep.

"That wasn't seven minutes."

"I doubt anything else was going to happen. Ten-chan and Naru-chan are going in now."

"How troublesome." Riz pulled them out and Naruto and Tenten instantly went in. As soon as the door closed Tenten grinned.

"Well, we should make this more fun than basically anyone else so far." Tenten kissed Naruto, and he happily kissed her back. The next seven minutes passed like that, with them occasionally parting. They came out grinning and watched Riz cheer up immediately at it. She clapped her hands together.

"Wonderful! Lee, you're next!"

"Wonderful! It's my turn to-!" Riz clamped a hand over his mouth.

"We don't need to hear it. Just pick a name please." Lee grinned and grabbed a slip.

"Ino!"

"What?"

"In you go! Remember, it's a game, so have fun!" Riz pushed her in after Lee. Lee gave Ino a thumbs up.

"In the Youthful spirit of Springtime, I will try my best to follow what is supposed to happen in this game!"

"What?" Lee quickly kissed her and she tried to back away. Eventually pushing him off her and beginning to hit him with her 16-hit combo. She had almost succeeded when Riz opened the door.

"I said you can't attack them!"

"Too bad!" Riz smirked dangerously.

"Fine then." She quickly tied Ino's hands behind her back and closed the door again.

"Lee, it is far more youthful to keep up with the game than to not!" Ino screamed before it was muffled. Some people looked at Riz warily as she grinned.

"Well, I do sort of feel bad for her." She turned to Sasuke and grinned before re-opening the door, untying Ino, pulling Lee out, and shoving Sasuke in. Sakura screamed angrily and had to be held back so she didn't attack Riz.

"Is there something wrong Sakura? It's not like I'm leaving them in there very long." She pulled open the door and yanked both of them out with a grin, "Okay! Neji, you're up next!" He carefully took a paper out and glared at the name.

"No."

"After seeing me basically torture others, you're going to refuse to play? And here I thought you were smarter than that." He glared.

"I am not going in there with you." Riz looked at him as if someone she loved had just rejected her and then died a horrible death.

"But why not Neji? You're hurting my feelings here." Her eyes filled with tears, "Is there something wrong with me?" The grounds were silent as Neji took a step back. He heard some of the group begin to whisper.

"How could he refuse that face!"

"He's being so mean!"

"He's making her cry!"

"She's only been trying to be nice!"

"She only been in Konoha for about a year, and she's all ready being rejected and pushed away!"

"How could he do that?" Neji sweat-dropped and took another step back as she inched closer.

"I refuse to go in there with you!" Riz burst out crying and Neji was suddenly bombarded by some of the others.

"How could you make her cry like that!"

"You're so mean Neji!"

"What's so hard about going into the closet with her?"

"She's been nice to you!"

"She's even invited you to that last party, and now to this, and you won't even try to be nice to her?" Neji caved.

"Fine." He walked into the closet and Riz smiled happily and followed him. The door closed and Neji backed into the wall, refusing to look at her.

"Cheer up Neji, it's not that bad. And this is the only time you've been in here!" She laughed.

"You cheered up quickly." Riz smirked.

"Of course I did, I got what I wanted. Now I just need that ring back."

"Too bad." She went closer to him.

"Please?" She pouted.

"No." She sighed.

"All right then, you don't need to give it to me, but how about a deal? If I can make you blush, then I get it back?" Neji smirked.

"It won't happen. Deal." Riz's eyes sparkled and she kissed him, pressing against him fully. She ran her hands through his hair and pulled him against her. Eventually releasing him and beginning to kiss his neck, slowly going lower and sliding her hands up his shirt.

"What are you doing?"

"Playing the game love, why? Does this bother you?" She licked his neck.

"Stop that!" She kissed him again, letting him go just barely before the door opened. Everyone stared at them. Riz calmly strode out and sat back down. Everyone stared at Neji, with his wide eyes, hair messed up and coming loose from its tie, his shirt crumpled where Riz had pushed her hands under, and a light blush gracing his featured. Riz smirked and held out her hand.

"You're blushing Neji. The ring back please." His eyes focused back on her and he glared with the byakuugan activated.

"Cheat!" He managed to hiss out.

"As I recall, there were no rules about how I would get you to blush. Give me the ring."

"I will, but I need to see Lord Hiashi first." He left and Riz's eyes narrowed.

"Continue the game. Makoto is next, followed by Kurenai." She ran off after Neji. Gai, Iruka, and Kakashi all looked at each other worriedly. Makoto got up to pick his paper.

Riz tried to tackle Neji, but he had kept his byakugan activated and dodged her. She went after him again and finally did tackle him.

"Give me the ring!" Neji smirked.

"Bad timing." Riz froze and looked up at Hiashi.

"What is going on here?"

"I'm sorry, were we in the way? I was just messing around." Hiashi glared at the two.

"You have no time for such things as shinobi." He activated his byakugan to emphasize his point and froze while staring at Riz. Her eyes widened before she grabbed the ring from Neji and ran off. She made it back to the training grounds in record time and hid behind Iruka, pulling Kakashi and Gai around her too.

"So… what did I miss?" They looked at her oddly.

"Well… Makoto went in with Ino again, and Kurenai and Choji just came out. Who's next?" Kakashi tapped on her arm in code. "What happened?"

"Asuma is next." She lowered her voice, "I got my ring back, but ran into Hiashi doing it. He activated his byakugan and…" She trailed off and Kakashi tapped her arm again. "Does he know?"

"I'm not sure. I think he's confused about it. Here Kashi, your ring back. We're not dating anymore, so I shouldn't keep it."

"Is he coming?" Iruka whispered. She shook her head.

"I have no idea."

"Atsura." She glanced up sharply to see Asuma looking at her with a slip of paper in his hand.

"You got me?"

"Looks like it." She smiled.

"Cool." She walked into the closet after him. After a minute of silence she began to fidget.

"Are you going to do anything?"

"No." She sighed.

"I wonder if they'll let us out early then." He shrugged and leaned against a wall for the remainder of the time. When they came out Hiashi was just coming into the clearing, surprising Hinata and just about everyone else.

"F-father? What are you d-doing here?"

"I need to speak with Atsura." Riz hid behind Kakashi, Iruka, and Gai again. She tapped on Kakashi's arm. "Is his byakugan activated?" Kakashi nodded slightly.

"Sorry, but we're actually in the middle of a game here! Perhaps later?"

"Now."

"Later."

"Now."

"What don't you understand about later?" Hiashi walked towards them and Kakashi got up.

"Maa… You should let her finish the game. It couldn't hurt." He smiled as Hiashi paused before nodding curtly.

"Fine, but make sure she comes to see me right after." Kakashi waved him off.

"Of course." Hiashi disappeared and Riz let out a breath.

"Okay… well, Michiko? You're next!" Michiko drew Kakashi and they headed into the closet for a while. Riz heard them talk a little before it was quiet again. They came out at the end of their time and sat down, Kakashi still next to Riz.

"Okay… Ayame?" She pulled Makoto and when the door opened at the end of their time they were both blushing slightly. Next was Shin with Tenten. Riz rolled her eyes when they came out and got up to pick her paper.

"Okay, this is the last one! The game is over when I come out!"

"Can we leave if you don't pick us?" Riz shrugged.

"Sure. Take the snacks with you!" She read her paper gladly, "Makoto!" He got back up and headed into the closet after her as almost everyone else left. Iruka, Gai, and Kakashi stayed.

Riz smiled at Makoto.

"Well? Please say you're going to do something, otherwise this game really was a waste of time." He rolled his eyes.

"Fine." He leaned down and kissed her gently. She hugged him and they stayed like that until the door opened. She smiled at him and walked over to the remaining three as Makoto left and the closet collapsed.

"So, any ideas on how I can completely avoid Hiashi for the rest of my life?"

"You should just go see him and explain everything. He might be okay with it."

"I'm sorry, did you forget who we're talking about here? This is Hiashi, not Gai, Iruka, or you. It's completely different."

"How? You were pretty much the only Uchiha that had ever gotten along with the Hyuugas. I thought Hiashi had been a friend."

"A friend that will kill me!"

"Now, why would he do that?"

"That's like asking why Iruka would, and did, hit me!" Kakashi shrugged.

"Oh well, not my problem." He began to leave.

"What? Kashi!" He looked back at her coldly.

"It isn't. You dumped me and all, so I don't see how it would be my problem." He left and Riz just stared at the spot in shock. Gai patted her back.

"It will be all right! We will-!"

"No. Just… Just stop." She turned and left, leaving the pair watching her leave with different expressions of worry and grief on their faces.

* * *

The next morning and Riz was pacing in front of the Hyuuga complex, trying to figure out how to not be killed. Neji came out, heading off to meet with Gai.

"What do you want?"

"Be nice Neji." She sighed exasperatingly, "I'm here to see Hiashi."

"It helps to knock." He sneered at her.

"… You don't like me much, do you?"

"No." She smiled.

"Well, maybe you will again eventually." She jumped into the complex, right over the gate. He ignored the remark and went to see Gai.

She paused next to Hiashi's door before softly knocking.

"Hiashi? Are you there? I need to talk to you Hiashi." The door slowly opened and she stepped inside to be met with a glare. She winced.

"Did I come at a bad time? I could come back later…"

"Sit." She slowly moved forward and sat down, watching his every movement and as he activated his byakugan and glared at her more. She sighed.

"You told me to come here, you could at least say something…"

"Your chakra signature. It is the same as one Uchiha Riz."

"And?"

"Care to explain?"

"Not really. Care to guess?" He sighed and his eyes went back to normal.

"Why are you here, and do not try to lie."

"That's a lengthy story there love. You sure you have the time to listen to little old me?"

"More than enough time."

"Well, how about we go somewhere more private?"

"You are fine here." She sighed.

"Fine, you had better get comfortable, and I'm only telling you a brief outline." He nodded.

"Continue."

A while later and Hiashi hadn't moved. Riz finished and watched him carefully. He just watched her.

"Why did you not tell anyone this sooner?"

"Well, Kashi figured it out not too long after I came here, and then Gai figured it out because I was still wearing Kashi's ring. And then Iruka figured it out right after that. And of course the old man figured it out, and eventually told the ANBU captain. And the reason I had tackled Neji was because he had the ring from winning it in a fight and was going to show you after we had made another bet that I had won so I would get it back. And he knew I didn't want you to see it because I knew you would figure it out and I didn't want you to be real mad at me. Besides, I figured you would hate me and most likely attack me."

"… I should attack you, but I doubt anything would come of it."

"Seriously?"

"Yes. So, Neji beat you in a fight?" she grinned.

"Pure luck. You know me and making bets."

"What did you have to do?"

"Taijutsu only and be blindfolded. Which sucked with the whole byakugan! Although, I have sparred with Hinata too. She's pretty good, and still as adorable as ever!" Hiashi smiled slightly and she grinned as they began to talk.

Later and she finally walked into the ANBU hideout, being instantly glared at.

"You're late again." She shrugged.

"I had an important matter of business to take care of. At least I came on my own this time."

"You have a mission."

"Really? I do? Do I get a partner?"

"Makoto is your partner, now come choose your mask."

"Let's see, rat, owl, leopard, ferret… I'll take the ferret one!" Shin shook his head.

"Hurry up then, Makoto all ready knows the details, he'll explain to you on the way. He's waiting just outside the village." She was practically shoved out the door and made her way over there.

"Yo!"

"There you are. Ferret?"

"Yep. You're a tiger?" He nodded, "Remember, no names now."

"Got it. So what type of mission is it?"

"Infiltration. We'll be gone a while. Captain said you should be well suited to it."

"Right. Where to?"

"Cloud." They took off, Makoto filling her in on the way, "We're only trying to figure out what's been going on there, as we lost any and all contact with them a while ago. We think it has something to do with either Orochimaru or the Akatsuki. Do you know about them?"

"About Orochimaru, or the Akatsuki?"

"Either."

"I've heard of them."

"Good. Saves time. It should take us about two days to get there with no obstacles, and we should spend roughly a week there at least. When we get closer, we'll need to get a change of clothes. We have traveling papers here. A name was chosen for you. How does Aisha sound?"

"Aisha? Doesn't that mean alive?"

"I have no idea."

"… It's perfect. What's yours? And what is our relation?"

"Mine is Tonio. Do you know what that one means? Captain likes to use names he believes suits them."

"Hmm… I believe it means invaluable. He must like you."

"Right, but why did he pick yours like that?"

"No clue. What's our relation? And can we stop?" He nodded and they stopped, leaning on the tree trunks.

"According to our papers, we're engaged travelers." Riz just stared at him.

"You can't be serious."

"I can be."

"No one will believe that."

"They will if we act the part." He tossed a ring to her, "Come on Aisha, if we don't hurry, we'll never be married on any sort of schedule." He took off again.

"What?" She growled and followed him.

* * *

Back in Konoha Team 7 had just been assigned a mission. It was a C-ranked mission that was supposed to last a week. Naruto was determined to do his best, and the client they had to escort was not impressed. Kakashi sighed as he looked over all of them and had them get moving. It was going to be a long week.

* * *

Tonio! Love, come on! Let's take a break! I'm hungry!" Makoto sighed and stopped.

"Fine, fine. There's a stream ahead. Can you wait until then?"

"How far is 'ahead'?"

"Not to far, I promise." He began to move again and Riz groaned.

"_Idiot. If he keeps running along like that, he's going to run into trouble. And I don't want to explain everything!"_ She followed him, gaining speed until she passed him. She reached the stream far ahead of him and ran into Deidara.

"Clay-chan, yo!"

"Riz! What're you doing here, un?"

"I'm on a mission. Can you and Sori-chan leave quickly please? My partner will freak!" Deidara waved her off.

"Fine, we're leaving, but you owe us one, un!"

"Just go!" Deidara disappeared moments before Makoto came into the clearing.

"You couldn't wait to get here, could you?" She grinned.

"Nope. You have food right? I don't want to go find some."

"Too bad. I can hunt if you want, but you'll have to search for anything else."

"Trade those positions around and this just might work."

"You're hunting?"

"Yep, unless you want fish."

"Doesn't matter to me. I'll be back."

"Later!" she looked into the stream, "No fish apparently…"

"What are you gonna have, un?"

"Didn't I say to get out of here?"

"Your partner left!"

"So?" A few fish landed at her feet and she looked up to see Sasori.

"Here. Use those."

"Hey! Those were mine, un!" Sasori just turned and left.

"Sorry Clay-chan. Maybe I'll have the chance to make you dinner one day."

"You better, un!" He disappeared and Riz made a fire and began cooking the fish. Makoto came back with a handful of stuff.

"There isn't much around here. We must not be the first travelers to pass by today."

"Probably. This is all the fish I could get." He nodded.

"Still more than I got." He handed her the plants and she looked over them, eventually tossing half out. He looked at her and she shrugged.

"Some weren't any good and some were poisonous."

"How do you know? They seemed fine to me."

"I was a traveler before Konoha, remember? I picked up a few things."

"Right. Do you know how to cook those?"

"Pretty sure. Did you bring any other clothes? It would be easier to act and dress like Tonio and Aisha now instead of switching later. Get into character and all."

"Yeah. We got one outfit for you, but we'd better not get attacked while you're wearing it." He pulled out a shirt with long flowing sleeves and this long skirt that would be hard to walk in, let alone fight in.

"You can't be serious."

"I am."

"Well… I can fix it, hand it over." She grabbed her clothes and pulled out a kunai before proceeding to cut slits up the skirt and the sleeves off the shirt. She pulled out a needle and thread and sewed the sleeves back on, except they were much shorter and slit on the top. She held the outfit up and smiled.

"Perfect. I can wear my shorts under it and I'll look like the perfect traveler. Are we supposedly selling anything?"

"What we were doing was left up to us." She began to change and Makoto turned away.

"I think we should be merchants. Selling small things that I can make on the way. We could sell clothes. jewelry, some food… Can you think of anything?" She turned back around and smiled, "I'm done by the way." He looked back up and smiled.

"Nice. I can't make anything, so it looks like we're going with your ideas." She smiled again and grabbed a fish.

"Foods done. Come and eat and then you can change, okay?" He nodded and sat down. She finished quickly before heading into the forest.

"Where are you going?"

"Search for materials. We should have our merchandize with us at all times." Makoto watched her head off in search and shrugged before he finished eating and went to change.

Riz stretched and began her search, casually strolling through the woods. She sensed some people nearby, but made sure to not let it show. She smiled at a fox and bent down, stretched her hand out for it. It looked up and began to crawl closer when it suddenly stopped and ran away. Riz tilted her head and looked behind her. She couldn't clearly see anyone, so she shrugged and stood back up. She continued walking when the group surrounded her. She stumbled backwards when one landed in front of her.

"What do we have here? A pretty little thing, ain't ya?" The men grinned and her eyes darted between them as she backed into a tree.

"What are you doing out here alone? You wanna come with us?"

"Hey look! She's got a ring! Your guy nearby? He shouldn't let you walk around alone like this. The woods can be dangerous you know. Bandits and all." The men grinned.

"Thank you, I should be getting back. I'll be careful…" The men smirked and stepped closer.

"What's your hurry? We haven't had any fun yet. We were just getting to know each other!" One grabbed her arm.

"Why don't you come with us? We'll treat you real nice…" He grinned and she tried to pull away.

"Please let me go! I have no money or anything! Please!"

"That's a shame there… But we know how you came make it up to us…" They all closed in on her and she sighed.

"You are all idiots, aren't you?" She was slapped.

"What was that you bitch? You don't understand this, do you? We're gonna have our way with you, and there's nothing you can do about it!"

"Is that so?" She smirked and dropped to the ground spinning before jumping into the tree.

"Well? Come on now, I thought you were going to have your way with me. Can't you even stop one traveling girl?"

"What the hell? Get her!" They jumped and tried to reach her while others began to climb the tree.

"Just rip them clothes off! They only get in the way!" She shook her head and did a few hand signs before placing it on the tree.

"Pigs. Summoning jutsu, fox pack." The men screamed as they were attacked by multiple foxes. Riz just sat back and watched with the elder fox.

"Did you really need to summon us for this?"

"Probably not, but it was easier and if I tear these clothes, I'm screwed. Why? Did you not want to see me?" The fox shook his head and called the others back.

"Did you want any of us to stay? Travelers often have animals with them." Riz smiled.

"Sure. Small enough to ride on my shoulder please…. Maybe one for Makoto?"

"Right. Take them two in the back and I'll see you later." He disappeared, the rest following suit until it was just those two left, which quickly came up to her.

"We're with you!"

"Yes, with you!"

"And you both need to try not to talk much, understood?"

"Understood!" She smiled.

"Come on then. You two can help me look for supplies."

Makoto glared as she came into the clearing an hour or two later.

"I heard screams. And what are those?"

"Foxes obviously, and calm down."

"Nice to meet you!"

"Nice to meet you! I'm gonna be with you!" The fox jumped off Riz and climbed onto Makoto's shoulder.

"A summoning?"

"Yep."

"… I thought you summoned snow leopards?" Riz paused.

"I do, but I can also summon foxes."

"Two summons? It's unheard of!"

"Well, now it's heard of." She mentally slapped herself. _"Idiot. Make sure to not summon anything else!"_

"You got your supplies then? We should be going."

"We can't travel by tree anymore. We're travelers now, we have to go by foot." He nodded and they set off, traveling slower than they normally would since they had to stay on the path, and Riz insisted on making her trinkets on the way. By the time night had fallen, Makoto was exhausted from going that slow and making small talk with everyone they passed as Riz showed off her items. She seemed to be much better at this than he was. It almost was like she really was this Aisha. If he didn't know better, and if the foxes weren't there, he might have began to believe she was someone else. He led her off the path and began to set up camp. She continued to make things until she ran out of materials. She smiled at her work and packed it up before happily strolling over to him, hugging his back.

"Tonio! Thanks for setting up camp love. Did you enjoy today? We made quite a bit for such a small path, don't you agree? Oh, we need to eat! Silly me, I was caught up in the moment! I'll go gather some edible plants and you can go hunt, okay?" She kissed his cheek and wandered off. He stared after her before smiling and going off to hunt. When she came back they ate in silence and went to bed. She kissed him goodnight, and before he could say anything she ducked into her tent and went to sleep.

* * *

**I do hope you all liked it. Thanks for reading everyone and don't forget to review! It puts me in a typing/updating mood :) Oh, and a note to ItsGayLove: I cannot updae Why Does This Happen or Pain in Birthdays seeing as how they are not on my laptop and I have to retype them up. I have them printed out, but it's going to take a while. Sorry about that.**


	12. 11:Hospitals are still evil

**Oh look! Another chapter! Woopie! Okay, I'm done. Enjoy the chapter.**

* * *

"Aniki? Aniki? …Aniki! ANIKI WAKE UP!" Itachi turned over and shoved her across the room.

"Quiet." He went back to sleep and Riz pouted before heading over to Kisame.

"Sushi-chan? Sushi-chan? Wake up Sushi-chan!"

"No." She glared at the two sleeping figures and left the room. She flopped back onto her bed and started to manipulate her chakra. An hour later she grinned as Itachi and Kisame burst into her room.

"I thought you had dulled the colors! Why is our room bright neon orange?" She pouted.

"Well, you wouldn't wake up. And I found that I can manipulate the colors with my chakra, even though I can't get them off. So it's your own fault!" The pair glared at her.

"Change it back."

"No."

"Imooto, that's enough. Change it back now." She pouted again before sighing.

"Fine. The walls are a darkish blue, okay?" They nodded and left the room. A moment later Orochimaru walked in.

"Are you ready to leave?" He smirked at her and she threw a pillow at him, knocking him to the ground. He glared at her and emptied the pillow case before slithering out.

"We are leaving now." She sighed and grabbed her bag before following him.

"Joy."

* * *

Riz followed Makoto slowly. She had finish making stuff a while ago, and was now officially bored. They hadn't seen anyone else on the road all day. Makoto kept looking back at her and asking her to hurry up, but she ignored him. Finally she went and sat down with a sigh.

"Something wrong?"

"No, I just want to take a break. I'll be right back, okay?" He nodded, confused, as she walked into the woods, leaving her fox with him. Once she decided she was far enough away she stretched and threw a kunai into a tree, smiling when it was thrown back down and a silver-haired man jumped down.

"Trying to hit me, are we?"

"If I was trying to, I would have." He chuckled and stepped closer.

"And to what do I owe this pleasure?"

"First off, why are you following me?"

"Passing through. Is that a crime?"

"When done right, yes." He smirked.

"Who's your new friend? Or should I say, fiancé?" She pushed him.

"My partner, be nice. By the way, have you and Snake-man been in Cloud lately?"

"Is this part of your mission?"

"Perhaps."

"Well, perhaps we have, perhaps we haven't." she grinned and pushed him against a tree.

"Come on Kabuto, don't you want to tell me?" She purred into his ear. He smirked.

"Nice try, but I believe you made it very clear you had no interest in me since you have a boyfriend in Konoha."

"Your information is outdated love, we broke up a while ago. Besides, I seem to have a kink for silver hair."

"I am also with Creepy Snake-man."

"Not actually with, I hope." He pushed her off.

"No, but thank you for implying I'm gay as you try to seduce me." She laughed.

"I couldn't help it, after all, it _is_ Snake-man we're talking about." Kabuto sighed.

"Must you be so degrading every time?"

"I've known him longer love, remember when I told you about how he was literally kicked out of the Akatsuki?"

"Yes…"

"And I knew him before that. I have every right to at the very least make fun of him."

"All right, all right. I'll be leaving now." She grabbed his arm.

"Now why would you just want to leave me like that love? Are you not enjoying yourself? I could make it better."

"I don't even want to think about what you might have meant by that. You're not going to let me leave until I give you some information, are you?"

"I'm sure we both know the answer to that." He smirked and switched their positions, pressing her into the tree.

"And just will I get if I do tell you?" She licked his ear.

"Satisfaction?"

"I don't think so." She looked up at him.

"A date the next time I can then. I may even let you choose where." He smirked and stepped away.

"Deal. Yes, we've been in Cloud recently, although it looks like we're going to have to relocate. It was merely a temporary base anyway. Is that enough information for you?" She smiled.

"For now, yes. Until later then." He nodded once and disappeared. She stretched and began to trek back to the trail. She paused before she came into view and turned around.

"Kabuto! How the hell am I supposed to know this information without even a body to make it look like I tried?"

"Use that pretty little head of yours. I'm sure you could figure something out. Bye Riz." Her eye twitched.

"You bastard!" She could've sworn that she heard him laughing as she went back to Makoto.

"Tonio dear, look at what I found!" She held up a few shards of gems, "Aren't they lovely?" He nodded.

"It took you a while honey, I was getting worried." She went and hugged him.

"Aww, I'm fine dear, don't worry. I'll make sure to never take so long again." She kissed him and smiled, "I'm going to go put these somewhere safe and then we can get moving, okay?" He smiled and nodded.

"All right, but hurry up, we need to be going. I wouldn't want you to have to sleep on the ground again, it's not good for you." She smiled again as she picked up her pack.

"I'm fine as long as I'm with you." He smiled and shook his head slightly as he grabbed his pack and they began moving. They walked closer than normal, her hanging onto his arm. He tapped out his questions in code as she giggled and talked about the sights.

"It's so beautiful here! Don't you think dear?" 'Being followed, and better for other travelers to see us coupled now. I all ready had the foxes leave.'

"Of course, but nowhere near as beautiful as you." 'How many follow?'

"Stop exaggerating! There's no way I could be that pretty!" 'At least one. Must have seemed suspicious. Saw marks in woods, think Cloud has been taken over.'

"Nothing could compare to you. All else pales and bows to you honey." 'Got it. Keep this up, all should be fine. You are very good at this.'

"Aww, thank you! You're lying, but it's so sweet!" 'That's why I was assigned. Keep your eyes peeled. Two following now, both seemingly powerful, but probably just lackeys.'

"Well, well, well, what do we have here? A happy couple traveling without any protection? That ain't very smart now." Riz glanced around to see at least ten more guys surround them, and it looked like more were coming.

"Cloud is off limits right now, but you might be useful to Lord Orochimaru."

"Looks like you're coming with us."

"Hmm… Pretty girl, I think I'll take you myself." The guy sneered and she shivered.

"G-get away from us! We've done nothing wrong! We don't even know this Orochimaru guy!"

"That's Lord Orochimaru to you wench! Now come quietly and I won't have to hurt you. You might even enjoy tonight." Her eyes widened and she shivered again.

"No! Get away!" Makoto tapped her arm again. 'We should let ourselves be captured, it would be the best way to gather information. I'll try to bargain with them for you.'

"Please, don't take her! She's done nothing wrong! We'll go with you, just don't do anything to her! We'll give you anything!"

"You're coming with us anyway! Don't worry, we'll be nice…" They sneered and grabbed them, pulling them away from each other.

"No! Tonio! Tonio, don't fight back! I couldn't bear to see them hurt you! Just do whatever they say!"

"Aisha! No! Let me go! Aisha! Aisha!"

"How disgusting." Kabuto jumped down and finished his last hand seal and put them asleep. He looked over them and quickly killed the men.

"Lucky for you they were marked for death anyway." He kicked her side, "Get up, I know you well enough to know that you didn't fall asleep." She turned over and looked up at him.

"Friends of yours?"

"Hardly."

"Who were those creeps Kabuto?"

"Temporary recruits that were going to die soon anyway. They were in the way. Come on, I have to at least put you both in a cell."

"How long will he be out?"

"Why?"

"Because I did promise you a date, did I not?" He smirked.

"Yes, you did. Well, if done right, he could be out until the morning."

"That should be enough time, ne?" He nodded.

"Come on, he needs in a cell now anyway." She grabbed him and followed Kabuto into Cloud. There was one person watching the entrance, but as soon as he recognized Kabuto he backed off.

"This way. Hurry up."

"Don't tell me what to do love, it doesn't work well."

"Hurry before Orochimaru figures out it's you."

"Right, that would be a problem, wouldn't it?"

"Seeing as how you aren't supposed to have any prior relationship with him, it would be bad for the both of us." She rolled her eyes.

"All right, all right. I get it. Where's this stupid cell?"

"Heavy?"

"No, I just have to keep watch for Orochimaru, carry him, make sure he doesn't wake up, and still attempt to look normal and as if I was a prisoner too. This isn't difficult at all!" He chuckled.

"Would you rather me carry him?"

"No, I would rather keep my head down and have you act more like I'm a prisoner as well. I don't trust you with him."

"What's this? Protecting him? Didn't you say he was just your partner?"

"Is that a hint of jealousy I detect?"

"Do you like him?"

"Why do you want to know?" He glared slightly and looked away.

"Just hurry up." She giggled.

"You are jealous!" She whispered, "It wouldn't matter so much if you weren't!" She giggled uncontrollably as he blushed lightly.

"You're supposed to be a prisoner. Laughing doesn't help you look like one." She took a deep breath.

"Yeah, yeah, I know. I just couldn't help it. I find it funny when people get jealous. although, I can't figure out why you are… You've never taken any interest in me before, other than trying to figure out how my mind works, and wanting to experiment on me…" She quieted as Kabuto led them into a maze of holding cells. He unlocked one farthest from any guards and let her pass him. She carefully put Makoto down, using the one blanket to cover him up before stretching and looking over to Kabuto.

"He'll sleep till morning?"

"Only one way to be sure." She nodded and watched him do his sleeping jutsu again, making sure to not be caught up in it.

"All right then. Where were you planning to take me?"

"You sound like you expect me to take you to a lab, but that wouldn't make much of a date, and I need to make the most of a chance that I'm likely to never have again. Just follow me." He grabbed her arm and they teleported to just outside of Cloud's borders.

"Kabuto! Where on earth are you taking me?"

"You'll see. Don't worry, it's nothing bad."

"Isn't that an opinion?"

"It's nowhere perverted."

"I didn't think it would be."

"And I'm not going to experiment on you, or probe your mind or anything."

"Than what-?" She froze as Kabuto stopped.

"We're here." She didn't move.

"Where… Where are we? There's no place like this next to Cloud."

"There wasn't a place like this."

"But how…?"

"I made it."

"I thought you only messed with human experiments."

"You thought wrong. I mess with everything."

"Including me. I'm confused Kabuto, why did you make this place, and why did you bring me here?" He smirked.

"You're supposed to be so clever too. Obviously, I made it for you."

"How… How is that obvious?"

"Why else would I make this place, and then bring you here?"

"…Ok, why did you make it for me then?"

"Can't you even figure that out on your own?" he sighed, "No, of course not. I'm probably not making any sense to you."

"Was it not obvious enough for you?" He grabbed her suddenly.

"Perhaps this will clear things for you." Her eyes widened and she froze as he kissed her suddenly. After a moment he pulled away, letting his grip on her shoulders loosen.

"Wha?"

"I… don't hear you saying 'no'" she blushed.

"Th-that's because I'm in shock! Pervert!"

"Pervert?" She glanced away.

"You know, normally, when a guy likes someone, they'll at least tell them before kissing them."

"All right then. Uchiha Riz, I like you to say the very least." He kissed her again.

"Just like?"

"For now, that's all I'm going to tell you." She pouted.

"Well, that's no fair."

"Fair?" She smiled and winked.

"I'll tell you more later. Now come on, if you made this place for me, I may as well look around and enjoy it while I have the chance!" she laughed and ran off, Kabuto following her.

* * *

They headed back to the holding cells just before dawn and Riz quickly slipped in next to Makoto, sitting in a corner and wrapped her arms around her knees before dropping her head on top.

"What are you going to tell him?"

"That I overhead someone talking about how Orochimaru is leaving soon, seeing as it was only a temporary base. Also that he has been trying to become immortal. That should satisfy the mission requirements. Thank you Kabuto."

"And all I got out of this was to watch you run around like a child." She looked up at him.

"You kissed me too."

"Of course." She rolled her eyes and stood up, kissing him quickly through the bars.

"Better?"

"Perhaps."

"I'll take that." She smirked and sat back down, getting back into position as Kabuto left. Makoto woke a few minutes later, jolting upright.

"What happened?"

"We were captured by a sleeping jutsu, it seems you caught the worst of it."

"Those men?"

"The jutsu had come from behind us, so I'm not sure what happened to them. I was caught by surprise as well."

"How long have you been awake?"

"A few hours."

"Have you heard anything?"

"Actually, I have. I'll tell you in a minute. The guards are doing their rounds. Pretend to still be asleep." He laid back down and she dropped her head as they passed, stopping at their cell.

"Looks like he's still asleep. Hey girlie, why don't you come over here. We'll give you special treatment." She tensed and scooted farther into the corner. They laughed.

"Looks like we'll just have to come get you." They unlocked the door and she looked up, weighing her options. She made her decision when they grabbed her and tried to strip her. She threw them off her as Makoto got up.

"Look dear, they even opened the door for us." She had swiped their keys when she had thrown them off her, and made sure to lock them in the cell as they left. They looked in some of the cells as they passed, and Riz had fun opening quite a few of them before they left. They were well past Cloud's borders when they stopped.

"So? What did you overhear?"

"It was Orochimaru in Cloud, obviously. But it seems like he's going to be relocating soon. They mentioned it was only a temporary base. I also heard something about him wanting to become immortal." He nodded.

"That's all we really needed. Let's head back."

"Right, but I'm going to change first." Makoto laughed as she headed farther into the trees. They made it back to Konoha without anymore trouble and Riz said she would report to the Hokage if Makoto reported to Shin. She gave the ring back and left. She just barged into his office, completely forgetting she was supposed to knock, just like she used to.

"Yo! I'm back!"

"I noticed. How did it go?"

"Perfectly fine."

"And?"

"It was Snake-man in Cloud. He was using it as a temporary base. He's still trying to become immortal, and is now relocating."  
"And you found out all of this, how?"

"I overheard it."

"You're lying." She pouted.

"Why can't you ever take my first answer?"

"What actually happened?"

"Fine. We were attacked by some pervert thugs, but kept playing our assigned parts when Snake-man's right-hand man put everyone to sleep. I got out of it and chatted with him all night, but that's all I got out of him. Satisfied?"

"Who is his right-hand man?"

"Sorry old man, I'm not telling you that one."

"Most would consider that treachery."

"I call it protecting a friend." They stared at each other for a while before Riz smiled, "Well, if you don't need anything else, I'm going to find Sasu-chan."

"Team Seven is not back from their mission."

"Really? But it's been a week."

"They should be back soon then. Don't worry."

"All right. I guess I'll hang with Hiashi or something."

"Hiashi?"

"Don't ask. Later old man!" She disappeared and headed towards the Hyuuga complex, pausing when she passed her old home. She stared at it for a while before shaking her head and continuing. She jumped the gate and landed on a roof. She strolled along it until she was yelled at.

"Hey! You! Get down from there!" She looked down to see someone shouting at her.

"You some type of guard?"

"Yes! Now get down or else!"

"Or else what?"

"Get off the roof." She spun around and came face-to-face with Hiashi.

"But you're on the roof."

"What are you doing here?"

"I just got back from a mission and was bored. Apparently Team Seven is still out on their mission." He sighed and walked away.

"All right, follow me then." She grinned and bounced after him.

"Where are we going?"

"I want to see how much you have improved while you were gone." She whined.

"What? But Hiashi, that's no fun!" He ignored her and kept walking. She sighed and followed him to the Forest of Death. He stood across a clearing and faced her.

"Would you like to begin?"

"Can you set some rules? Only taijutsu maybe? Or just genjutsu or-"

"Anything goes as long as one doesn't kill the other." She sighed again.

"All right Hiashi, but if I beat you, how am I to explain your injuries?"

"You know some medical ninjutsu."

"All right, whenever you're ready." He nodded once and activated his byakuugan.

"Begin." and with that, they disappeared.

Three hours later Riz looked carefully around her with the sharingan.

"_I know you're close Hiashi…"_ She spun around and jumped away from his attack, instantly retaliating with her own. He disappeared and appeared behind her clone as another hit his clone as they both ran off and met back in the clearing with a clash of metal. She jumped away and held up a hand to stop his movements.

"It looks like someone's watching us." She glared into the trees, watching the person's every movement as Hiashi made another clone and went to investigate as she fought his clone. Hiashi came back and dispersed the clone. He pointed to a man that was tied upside down.

"A friend of yours?"

"On occasion." She turned to him, "Well? Did you need something Kisame?" He grinned.

"Decided to say hello, and it looks like I might hang around for a bit."

"That was nearly the dumbest pun I've ever heard come from your mouth. Now, why are you here? Is Aniki here too?"

"Sort of… He got me into Konoha, but stayed out of the way. Who's your friend by the way?"

"Hyuuga Hiashi. What do you mean stay out of the way?" Kisame shrugged.

"We're getting back from a mission and had to check on Konoha for classified reasons." She nodded.

"All right then, I want a message soon about how things are progressing. Say hi to Aniki for me."

"Of course." He untied himself and began to leave.

"Oh and Kisame?"

"Yes?"

"You two haven't been doing anything have you?" He blushed.

"Of course not!" He disappeared and Riz turned back to Hiashi.

"Shall we finish our spar?" He shook his head.

"I believe I have seen enough. You've improved. Well done." She grinned.

"Really? I knew I had a little, especially with the sharingan, but you've never complimented me before! Have I improved much?" He nodded once and patted her shoulder.

"Very much. Now come, we need to clean up before people begin to wonder where we are." She laughed as they began to walk back to the Hyuuga compound.

A few days later and she was in the Hokage's office for the umpteenth time, harassing him about the fact the Team 7 still wasn't back yet. She was still whining when the door opened and Kakashi stepped in.

"Yo!" She jumped at him and began shaking him by his shoulders.

"Where have you been? Is Sasuke all right? And the rest of the team? What happened? Why are you so late?" He sighed and grabbed her hands to make her stop.

"First, my report is for the Hokage, not for you. Second, shaking me like that won't get you answers any sooner. Now leave so I can give my report." She glared at him before slinking over and sitting on the floor next to the Hokage. He just looked at her.

"You probably should leave then."

"Screw you old man, I'm staying right here."

"You're not staying." She glared at Kakashi again.

"Shove it up your ass Kakashi. I don't take orders from you." Sarutobi sighed.

"Then I'm ordering you to leave." She stared in shock at him.

"But… Oh never mind. Fine, I'll leave this room." She disappeared and Kakashi began his report. By the end of it, Riz's eyes were wide as she unfolded herself from beneath the window and went to check on Naruto and Sasuke, knowing Sakura's mother would be worrying enough for her. She missed the last bit of their conversation.

"Kakashi, you shouldn't be so mean to her. You're pouting like a small child."

"I know… Just can't seem to help it."

Riz pounded on the door to Naruto's apartment as soon as she got there, pushing her way inside as soon as he opened the door. Before he could say anything she had torn his shirt off and was checking him over.

"What are you doing? Hey!"

"Oh be quiet Naruto. I'm just checking for injuries."

"Eh heh heh… Don't worry about me, I'm healed all ready. I heal pretty fast." He tried to wiggled away and she grabbed him tightly.

"I don't care that Kyuubi heals you Naruto! I'm going to make sure, so stay still and shut up!" He froze and stared at her with wide eyes. A few minutes later and she smiled.

"Okay, you're good to go." He smiled shakily.

"See? I told you…" She looked softly at him.

"I've known about Kyuubi for a long time Naruto, don't worry about it. Now, let's go check on Sasuke. I just might need help to get him to stay still." They both grinned and headed out to Sasuke's. Naruto knocked on the door with his usual finesse. He pounded on it and shouted until the door opened. Upon realizing who was there, Sasuke attempted to slam the door. Riz smiled in a obviously fake-yet-I'm-going-to-smile-anyway sickly sweet way and blocked the door.

"No need to be rude Sasuke. I only came to see how you're feeling after such a difficult mission."

"I'm fine, so leave." She smiled again and glanced at Naruto.

"If you wouldn't mind Naruto?" Naruto grinned and tackled Sasuke to the ground, holding him there the best he could as Riz tore his shirt off and tried to check him over as he struggled. After he had gotten away from Naruto for the fourth time she tackled him herself and tied his arms behind his back.

"Now stay still. I'm only doing this because I care about you."

"Like I need you! Just another fan girl!" She tied a cloth over his mouth before going back to her original intent of making sure he was healthy. Finally she sat back with a smile and looked at him. After a second of him glaring at her she smirked and leaned down to kiss him on the forehead. She pulled back with a classic Uchiha smirk in place before nodding at Naruto to let him go. As soon as he was freed from his restraints, Sasuke punched Naruto and shoved them both out of the apartment. They just laughed and walked down the street.

"You hungry Naruto? My treat."

"Really? Awesome! Where are we going? Can it be ramen? We should invite Iruka too!"

"Whoa Naruto, slow down. Yes really, we'll go to Ichiraku's, and of course Iruka can come. Go invite him."

"All right!" Naruto raced off, making Riz giggle. She waited for him at Ichiraku's and joked around with Ayame and Teuchi until they finally came in and sat down. Iruka smiled as Naruto eagerly ordered.

"So? What brought this on?" She shrugged.

"Nothing really. I was just getting a bit hungry. Besides, I won't be seeing people for a while."

"What do you mean by that?"

"New mission is all. Eat up Iruka and stop worrying about reasons behind every action." She smiled and dug into her own ramen as Naruto ordered another bowl. Once she was done they waited for Naruto to finish his fifth bowl before leaving. Naruto grinned and thanked her before running off. Riz smiled and turned to leave as well when Iruka grabbed her arm.

"Come on, I want to hear about your upcoming mission."

"Ruka… I'm not technically supposed to talk about it. Especially if there are any Genin around."

"How come?"

"I can't say."

"Then we'll go to my place." She rolled her eyes.

"If I didn't know better, I would say you hitting on me."

"Good thing you know better then. Let's go." She shook her head.

"Sorry Ruka. You'll find out soon enough, and I should be going. See you." She disappeared and ended up in the Hokage's office.

"All right old man. Give me the scrolls and I'll head out." He pointed to a bag next to his desk.

"Good luck."

* * *

Riz came back early in the morning and headed to the Hokage's office with a sleepy grin plastered on her face. He looked up.

"Good morning Atsura. How was the mission?"

"Good morning Lord Hokage. Mission completed."

"Thank you Atsura. Unfortunately, I need you to help with the preparations for the exams. Did you get a list of who may be coming?"

"Yes sir. I wrote them in this scroll."

"Thank you. I'm having you work with Iruka on the preparations. You're dismissed."

"Yes sir." She smiled again and walked quietly out the actual door.

"It's nice to see anyone higher than a chuunin to actually use the door."

* * *

She knocked on Iruka's door and waited for a while before knocking again. She waited some more before the door finally opened and she smiled.

"Good morning Iruka. I'm helping you with preparation for the exams."

"Why didn't you tell me they're being held here? I know that's what your mission was about!"

"Surprise?" She grinned again and he sighed.

"It's no use talking to you like this. Come on, you need some sleep."

"Sorry Iruka, but I have orders to assist in the preparations for the exams now."

"But-"

"What do you need help with?" He sighed stepping out next to her.

"Follow me." She nodded once and followed in silence. They ended up setting up a classroom with chairs lining the walls before heading to the forest. He had her set up traps and see how the local wildlife was doing. She finished the traps quickly before falling asleep in a giant raven's nest. Iruka found her there an hour later and quickly woke her up by throwing her to the ground. She landed on her feet, kunai in hand as another whizzed by Iruka's head. He had moved just in time, anticipating it. She blinked up at him for a moment before putting the kunai away and grinning apologetically.

"My bad. sorry about that Ruka." He rolled his eyes and jumped down next to her.

"Did you finish with the traps and checking on the animals and plants?" She paused.

"I finished the traps."

"Go check the animals and plants." She sighed.

"Oh well, at least I got a nap in." She smiled and disappeared deeper into the forest. Iruka sighed and went to tell the Hokage that they were finished, counting on her to move quickly. He made sure to take his time, just in case.

In the time it took for him to walk to the Hokage's, Riz went around checking on all the animals, scowling when she ran into the giant moths. There had always been something creepy about moths, and having them bigger than her didn't really help the case. She restrained herself though, making sure not to destroy them. Oh no, she would leave that to the incoming genin. She smirked at the thought and continued jumping through the trees. She paid special attention to the ravens, ferrets, foxes, wolves, and leopards. She ran a hand through one wolf's fur as she passed, smiling down at them. She was just about to head back when all the birds suddenly took flight, the wolves growling before springing away. She ducked down and plastered herself to the nearest tree as she glanced around to determine the location of the disturbance. She scowled as the forest became completely still including any noise that could have told her where to go. She almost slapped herself when she remembered the sharingan before activating it and searching around. Her nails dug into her palms when she still couldn't figure it out. She was about to give up when a branch snapped, causing her head to whip up towards the sound. She silently leapt into the tree and began to make her way in that direction, stopping above two very familiar heads. She hardly dared to breath, not wanting either to know of her presence as she settled down to wait.

"I've all ready enrolled in the exams with my… team. Everything is going according to plan. There's no reason to worry."

"Noting is to go wrong… I'm counting on you." He snickered and disappeared, leaving the other standing there silently. Riz didn't move as she waited for him to leave. She held her breath as he looked around, staring almost directly into her hiding spot. He left soon after though, and she let out her breath slowly, her mind processing what she had overheard. It took less than a minute for her to set out to see the Hokage. She got there not too long after Iruka had left and was just waved off. He told her not to worry about checking back in and to get some sleep, the next few days would be chaotic, after all. She was never able to get a word in. Scowling as she walked back to her apartment, she decided to try for the next best option and went to find Hiashi. He wasn't at the compound and everyone she asked said that he was busy and to come back later. Her scowl deepened as she went in search of Kakashi. She wasn't able to find him either and after going through a list of possibilities, stomped back angrily to her apartment. She threw herself onto her bed and lay there, not able to sleep as she considered what Orochimaru's plans could possibly entail. She finally drifted off into a restless sleep, only to be woken back up two hours later by a certain blue-haired konoichi. She glanced at her with a sigh.

"Iruka?"

"Is busy."

"Why?"

"Exams are soon."

"Mission?"

"Yes." Riz nodded.

"Can you do me a favor?"

"Of course."

"Check on Orochimaru. He was in the forest a few hours ago." Konan nodded once before disappearing in an almost silent rustle. Riz stared at the ceiling, knowing she wouldn't be able to get back to sleep, even though she knew Konan would stay true to her word and check on the snake for her. She got up and paced around the room for a while before leaving the room and heading over to see Hiashi. She sat on the rooftops of the Hyuuga manor with a sigh. Of course Hiashi was asleep. It would be far too simple for him to be awake. She lay down and went through her options. Try and get the Hokage to actually listen to her? Too much of a hassle without sure results. Find Kakashi? The Hokage idea would be easier than talking with him now. Gai? Too loud and would make a big deal too soon. Iruka? Needs his sleep. Looked like Hiashi would have to be woken up after all. She sighed and flipped through the window, instantly waking him up and earning a kunai at her neck, another next to her spine. She waited a beat for Hiashi to pull away and scowled when he didn't.

"Hiashi…"

"You know not to do that. Such foolish behavior."

"This is important Hiashi." He didn't withdraw and she managed a slightly worried glance at him, "Please Hiashi? You're making me nervous." He slowly dragged the kunai away.

"You are lucky to have not been killed." She shrugged and slumped onto the floor.

"Just listen to what I have to say." He watched her as she began to tell him about what she had overhead. His byakuugan faded by the end.

"You failed to inform the Hokage?"

"He brushed me off. I did try." He nodded.

"I will speak with him in the morning, but we cannot do much about it as we do not know who this imposter will be." Riz shifted slightly and frowned, feeling Hiashi's eyes on her. She sighed and looked up.

"What?"

"You are not telling me everything. You know who this imposter is."

"I'm sorry Hiashi… I cannot." She stood up and looked back at him slightly, "I owe him my life." She disappeared, leaving Hiashi to go over everything she had told him.

She kicked at rocks as she walked back to her apartment, chewing on a senbon and twirling a shuriken between her fingers. She sighed and looked up at the moon, wondering why she had ever thought she could pull this off. She scowled as the shuriken cut her and clanged to the ground. She just stared at it for a minute, trying to decide whether or not it was even worth picking it up. She glanced up when it was grabbed and held out to her.

"Having trouble?" Riz scowled at the smirk.

"And why would it matter to you if I was Neji?"

"I just find it sad that someone of your rank is having so much trouble with a shuriken." He held it out again, but she made no move to take it from him.

"You're right. My apologies." She walked past him without another thought, her face barely showing even a hint of despair. Neji watched her go in slight confusion before deciding it wasn't worth his time. Riz kept walking until she was back in front of the Uchiha Complex. She stood out front for a while staring at it, remembering the night before she left. How Sasuke had been sandwiched in between her and Itachi. And then his face the next day when he came home. She walked inside the gates and stood next to them, just out of view from anyone that would happen to pass by. She stared at her home for an hour as it began to rain before she slid down the wall to her knees, her eyes never leaving the building. It was still raining when Kakashi found her huddled there the next morning, almost missing her the first time he passed. He knelt down next to her and sighed before shaking her shoulder.

"Come on, you were supposed to meet Iruka an hour ago. My entire team is out looking for you now." He shook her again, "Atsura? Hey, can you hear me?" He glanced around, "Riz? Uchiha Riz? This is no time for games." She didn't move. He sighed and picked her up, teleporting to the hospital, "I'm taking you to the hospital Riz." When she still didn't respond, he panicked. He ran in and grabbed the first person he saw. He got her into a room in no time. Soon there were doctors rushing in and out of the room and Kakashi was being pushed to the side. With all the traffic, he couldn't even get out. They finally calmed down and he tried to leave, but was stopped.

"It's a good thing you brought her here. She's almost dead and in hypothermic shock. Watch her for a while until I get back. It should only be an hour or so."

"I actually have to go."

"Unless you want your nervous system to be running in reverse, I suggest you stay here." Kakashi groaned inwardly and slumped into the chair once the doctor had left. He just had to be an advanced medical ninja, didn't he? Kakashi watched her sleep for half an hour before he heard her mumble.

"Sasu…ke….. Ka…shi…sorry…" Kakashi sighed and grabbed her hand.

"Don't be sorry for something you had to do. We don't blame you, and we don't hate you… I'm the sorry one…" He looked back up at her face and sighed again. He sat back up, but kept holding her hand until the door opened. He glanced up at where he expected the doctor to be and an orange blur went past him.

"Atsura! Hey! Wake up! Are you okay?" Kakashi sighed as the rest of his team followed in.

"Sorry Kakashi, we tried to stop him, but he's such an idiot!" Sakura explained.

"What happened?" Kakashi just smiled, deciding telling Sasuke what he assumed had actually happened wouldn't be the best idea.

"Well, she got caught in the rain and apparently didn't feel like going inside last night."

"She was outside all night?"

"Is that concern I hear Sasuke?" Sasuke didn't answer, but Naruto did.

"Of course we care! She's our friend! Hey! You didn't upset her or something to make her stay out all night did you Kakashi?" He sighed.

"I didn't do anything. Why would you even suspect me?"

"Because she dumped you." They all said in unison.

"Really now, why would I be so cruel just because of that?" They all stared at him. He stopped smiling, "Such little faith…"

"You weren't exactly being nice after she dumped you." Sasuke commented.

"You'd better watch out Sasuke, or people might start to think that you actually care about her. Now let's go. We have a lot to do!" Kakashi got up and practically danced out of the room as the doctor walked in. His team followed more slowly. The doctor gave Riz a shot and shook her.

"I know you're awake." She blinked an eye open and smiled.

"Just barely. I only caught a little bit of what they said. So… can I leave now?" The doctor smirked.

"Don't even start. Not with me." She pouted.

"So mean. And here I thought you at the very least would be nicer to me."

"When did you get that idea? Now, stay still."

"I am not an experiment… And I'm fine… So…" He stuck a kunai into the bed next to her head and leaned in close.

"I'm the doctor here, and I say you're staying. If you're good, I won't even experiment."

"You make it sound perverted Kabuto." He smirked again.

"Ah-ah, I'm Doctor Kumiki." She rolled her eyes.

"I do have things to do. I am not going to stay here."

"I just have a few questions."

"Like?"

"Who did you tell, and what did you say about my little meeting last night?" She tried to move and swore.

"Paralyzing powder shot straight intravenously… Aren't you full of tricks. What are you going to do if I don't answer you?" He took out another needle.

"I'll find out in a much more… dangerous way." She glared at him as he approached.

"I told a Hyuuga. The Hyuuga will tell the Hokage."

"Which Hyuuga? And when will the Hokage be told?" He placed the needle against her arm.

"He was probably all ready told. Now let me go."

"Which Hyuuga?"

"I'm not going to tell you. I didn't say it was you with that snake anyway, so let me go!"

"Why?"

"Because I still owed you. I repay my debts." He stabbed a needle into her arm.

"Don't get angry. I'm countering the paralysis. Looks like we're even now, so anything goes once you can move again. Bye Riz." He disappeared and she swore again as she slowly regained control of her body. As soon as she could she teleported to Iruka's house.

"Ruka! Are you here?" She sighed when there was no answer and went to look for him. Half an hour later and she was sitting in the Hokage's office waiting for Iruka to be brought in. An ANBU appeared and ignored her as he went straight to the Hokage and whispered something to him. Sarutobi nodded and the ANBU left. Riz watched him with a cool detachment, ready for anything he could possibly say.

"Iruka's missing." Ready for anything… except that of course.

"Run that by me one more time old man." He just looked at her and she stood up, regaining her composer with a deep breath before he decided to give her some other news she thought she would be ready for, but really wasn't.

"Seeing as your job was to help him, I'm going to have you go find him. If someone had taken him make sure to find out why, by any means necessary."

"Understood." She disappeared. It took her three days to find him, well outside of Konoha. During that time Sarutobi had made it clear that Naruto was never to find out and Kakashi had informed his team of the upcoming chuunin exams.

Riz followed what was left of Iruka's chakra signature and the ones she assumed had taken him. It was difficult and slow going. She had to give them credit; they were good, whoever they were. Almost three days after she had started she sensed people nearby and instantly masked her chakra and used a cloaking jutsu as she took to the trees again. She crept closer until she could just see three figures sitting in a circle and one laying just to the side. She crept closer and recognized Iruka as the one laying down. She had to stop moving as the other three shifted in her direction, obviously sensing something was off. She bit her lip and backed away far enough to be able to turn around and leave. Once she deemed herself far enough away she summoned some rats. They appeared around her and she watched them coolly.

"I hope everyone's here. I need you to help me get Iruka. About 6 kilometers 36 degrees due east. Iruka is on the ground and there are three men in a circle next to him. I need to capture and question these men to find out why they took him, but they are skilled so I needed something discreet. That's where you all come in." Some of the rats wandered away and she smirked.

"This will prove fun." One of the larger ones, about as big as her head, chuckled as he too disappeared into the trees. Riz waited three minutes before heading over. Her face blank, she walked calmly into the clearing where the three men were surrounded by the rats. Two were tied up with something she refused to ask about. The other one was still trying to fight them off. He glanced up with a killer's look when she came into view. He smirked and lunged at her, the rats moving to let him. She sidestepped him easily, bringing her leg up and smashing him down and unconscious without even breaking her stride. The rats huddled around Iruka to check on him while Riz went to talk with the two still awake. Lucky for her, one of them was ready to talk.

"Why did you take him from Konoha?"

"We had heard that… he knew about Konoha. It's layout and ranks and shinobi… We were taking him to figure everything out…" His partner smacked him.

"You fool. Don't tell the bitch anything!" Riz shifted her gaze to him.

"You're in the way." She cut him free and sent him flying before turning back to the first man, "Why do you want to know so much about Konoha?"

"We were hired! We were doing as told! Some small village wanted the information!" Riz nodded and stood up.

"All right. You're going to come with me back to Konoha. Your friends aren't so lucky." After she finished the rats dragged the two men away to get rid of them. Riz knelt next to Iruka and checked his pulse. She checked again before cutting the chakra wire holding him and taking his vest off to place her ear next to his heart. She scowled and picked him up, turning back to the man.

"You will follow me. If you try and run away, I'll kill you. Slowly." She untied him and put some chakra cuffs on him before taking back to the trees and speeding away. The man following her with difficulty. She got to the gates as the chuunin exams were about to start. She waited just long enough to be sure the man was still there before continuing to run through them. They tried to stop her and she threw a kunai at them with a note saying it was her, she'd be at the hospital, and the man coming with rats after her was a prisoner. One of them followed her to make sure while the other waited for the so-called prisoner.

She burst into the hospital and grabbed the first person she saw, scaring the poor guy and successfully getting Iruka into a room within seconds. As soon as she laid him down she was shoved out of the way and forced out of the room. She watched the room for a few seconds before heading to the Hokage Tower to report back in. She even knocked at his door and waited for him to let her in before slumping into a chair.

"Did you find him?"

"Yes. Captured one of three that took him. Other two have been disposed of. Iruka's in the hospital. Barely had a pulse when I got to him." The Hokage nodded.

"All right. I'll let you know what happens. In the meantime I want you to report to Ibiki to help with the exams today." She nodded blankly and stood to leave. "And Riz?"

"Yes sir?"

"I'm glad you're back here and okay. So don't ever pretend to be dead again." She smiled and left. Sarutobi sighed, "Now was that a yes?"

* * *

**Woot! You are all finally caught up now! IT'S A MIRACLE! Anyway, this is dedicated to everyone that has ever reviewed (and actually read since one person reviewed the first chapter without actually reading it all)! I hope you enjoyed it, and, as always, hope that you will review even if it is just to tell me you liked it or your favorite line. Until next time!**


	13. 12:Anko Gets A Gift

**I'm back people! Enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

Riz walked into a classroom to see Ibiki talking to Anko. Just her luck. Anko would recognize her in a heartbeat. She sighed minutely before rapping on the doorframe. They turned towards her. Anko's eyes widened, but Ibiki spoke first.

"Yes?"

"I'm supposed to assist with the exams. What do you need me to do?" Ibiki nodded and turned to grab a paper, finally noticing Anko's expression.

"Anko? Is there a problem? Oh, this is Atsura by the way." Anko shook her head.

"No it's not. It's a damn ghost." Riz frowned.

"It?" Anko glared at her.

"It. As in thing. As in ghost. Because last I knew, you were dead!" Ibiki put a hand on her shoulder.

"Anko. This is Atsura. What are you talking about?" Anko shook him off angrily and stalked up to Riz, who stepped back from the sheer force of her anger.

"Um… Hi?" Anko grabbed her wrist and squeezed, making Riz yelp. Anko smirked.

"I've only ever known one shinobi with their wrist as their weak point. No matter how well it was hidden." Riz tried to pull away, flinching when Anko squeezed again. Ibiki looked at them curiously.

"Anko… what you seem to be suggesting is not possible." Riz managed to break away with a small scowl.

"Ibiki, can you just tell me what you need me to do so I can get away from this mad woman?"

"Sorry, but we can't allow a traitor to leave." Anko made sure to keep her eyes locked on Riz.

"Traitor? How am I a traitor?" Riz stared coolly back at her as Ibiki walked up.

"Anko. You can't just accuse someone like that. You need proof."

"I have proof! She's standing right here when she's supposed to be dead! Same hair, same face, same weakness, same everything! The only difference is that she's older, so don't you dare try and tell me I have no proof."

"I apologize for looking like someone you knew. However, that's not my problem and I can't really help it. And I assure you I am no ghost. I am very much alive."

"I can see that. I want to know how, and why." Riz smirked.

"How? Well I eat two to three meals a day on average. Normally fairly healthy. I drink plenty of water and get a lot of exercise. Why? I don't think I really have a need or want to die as of yet."

"Don't play games with me!" Anko jumped at her, only to have Ibiki restrain her as Riz backed up, almost leaving the room.

"Perhaps I should come back later Ibiki." He nodded.

"Apparently." Riz turned to leave.

"Uchiha Riz if you take one step out of that door I swear I'm going to hunt you down!" Riz paused and looked back at her. A perfectly puzzled look gracing her features.

"Who?" Anko just seethed in Ibiki's grip. Riz shrugged, "I'll come back later Ibiki." She walked out of the building and sighed; "What a pain."

Riz looked around before turning to walk back to the hospital to see if any progress had been made. She went up to the nurse at the desk and politely asked about Iruka. The nurse shook her head.

"I'm sorry, but you can't see him."

"Can you tell me how he's doing?" The nurse bit her lip before nodding slightly.

"Not well. He's in critical condition and is about to be operated on. The operation is risky, but we have our best working on it." Riz stepped back and slumped into a chair.

"How? What's wrong with him?"

"Internal injuries. I'm not sure what happened to him, but whatever it was, he wasn't meant to live through it." Riz gritted her teeth as cold fury swept through her. She closed her eyes for a moment before thanking the nurse and walking out. She went back to the Academy and was relieved that Anko was no longer there. She rapped on the doorframe again and Ibiki looked up.

"I figured out a job for you to do in the exams. Not only are you going to help set up the first test, but you're going to participate. I trust you can disguise yourself well enough so no one will recognize you?" She nodded carefully.

"Yes…"

"Good. You're going to have to act as a genin and will be randomly placed among the others. You know about the test enough to understand your job?"

"Of course. I hope I'll get to see the test that I am going to have to take beforehand though." He nodded and handed her a copy.

"The test is tomorrow. I put some instructions for time and everything there. Now, let's set up the desks better." She smiled and helped set everything up. By the time she got back to her apartment it was more morning than night. She shook her head, wondering what had compelled her to stop to check on Sasuke and Naruto. She spent _hours_ watching them and now she wasn't going to get any sleep. She groaned and pulled out the test to go over it, a languid smirk crawling over her features.

"Too easy…" She fell onto her bed and fell asleep instantly.

She woke three hours later and rolled onto the floor before groggily getting ready for the test. She got to the Academy a bit late, arriving after Sasuke had gotten past the illusion of the floors, looking exactly like a young inexperienced kunoichi. She met up with her "team" and set off, ignoring their comments about her being late. She made sure to smile up until the doors opened and she saw the sheer amount of genin there. She changed her expression from exited to completely nervous. The ninja around her took one look at her and smirked, labeling her as an easy target. She raked her eyes over them, picking out the ones that were least likely to pass the first test. Her eyes narrowed as Kabuto walked up to Naruto and the others with that phony smile on his face. She turned away as Ibiki came in and had them draw their seats. She groaned when she realized her seat was two ahead and one over from Sasuke. The perfect spot for him to see her clearly. She sat down nervously and tuned out Ibiki's speech, only turning her paper over when everyone else did. She looked over it slowly and began to write. She started out slow before she sensed Sasuke watching her. She finished it quickly enough after that before writing him a small message:

_I know you're copying me Uchiha Sasuke. Perhaps you need to practice control with your sharingan more so as to not make it so obvious._

She grinned as he abruptly looked away from her, the sharingan fading. She stared at her paper for a while before starting to doodle a border. Getting bored of just lines, she began drawing hand signs instead. She looked up when Ibiki started shouting about the final question. She smiled and sat back to watch the genin begin to chicken out.

"_Odd. It's obvious that he's lying. He has such an obvious tell… Okay, maybe it's not so obvious…"_ Her head fell on the table when Naruto began shouting about never giving up. "Idiot." She looked back up in time to see Ibiki smile and explain how that was the point. He then told them about the moles in there, giving the cue for her to stand up and dispel the illusion. She heard a small intake of breath from Sasuke and a groan from both Naruto and Sakura. She grinned and looked back at her brother with a signature Uchiha smirk. She winked and waved before filing out with the others as Anko smashed in through the window. She couldn't help it; she turned slightly and smirked, winking at Anko before leaving, cackling evilly in her head. She grinned as her team parted ways, but soon lost the joy as she headed back to the hospital. She entered silently and walked past the nurse, ignoring her protests. She stopped outside of the room Iruka was supposed to be in and stared at the door. She stepped forward as a hand landed on her should. She looked back to see a nurse shaking his head.

"He's not there. I'm sorry." Riz took a step back.

"What do you mean?" The nurse shook his head.

"Umino Iruka isn't there."

"Then where is he?" Her voice turned cold as she stared at the nurse.

"He was sent home this morning, under orders to get plenty of rest and is on leave from work for a while." Riz sighed in relief and slumped against a wall before shakily performing the teleportation jutsu. She ended up on Iruka's couch and slowly made her way to the bedroom. She poked her head in to see him sound asleep, bandages wrapped around his head and torso. She smiled shakily and slumped to the floor asleep. She woke when Iruka stumbled over her. She managed to catch him so he didn't hit the ground, instead falling on her and knocking her breath out. She gasped as Iruka blinked blurry eyes before finally registering what had happened. He yelped and hauled himself up, using her offered hand to push himself up before offering her a hand. She refused and sat up.

"I'm sorry! Are you okay Riz?" She nodded and began checking him over.

"Are you? I didn't mean to make you trip. What about your other injuries? Are you in any pain? Do you need anything?" Iruka held his hands up and smiled.

"Calm down Riz, I'm fine." She looked pointedly at the bandages.

"No, you're not." Iruka walked past her.

"Then I will be fine. I just have to take it easy. And aren't you supposed to be helping with the chuunin exams?"

"I have been. The first stage is over. I was one of the moles during the test. They should be meeting with Anko outside the forest about now."

"What? I missed it? But I haven't even gotten to wish Naruto luck!" Riz smiled.

"I don't think they've entered yet. I'll go tell him for you."

"Thanks." She smiled again, extremely relieved that he was all right, and disappeared. She weaved her way through the crowd of genin until she was behind Sasuke. She grinned and ruffled his hair, earning an instant glare and almost a pout, but he didn't completely pull away. She blinked down and smiled happily, resting her hand on his hair as she looked over at where Naruto was talking to Konohamaru. She knelt down between Sakura and Sasuke. Sakura glared slightly at her, but Sasuke almost gave her a smile. Sakura noticed and looked between them. Riz could almost physically feel the jealously rolling off the girl. She watched Naruto for a while until he noticed her. He grinned and ran over to her.

"Hey Atsura! What're you doing here? Are you a mole here too?" Sasuke answered before her.

"If she was a mole, she wouldn't be sitting here with us without an illusion." Riz stood before they could start fighting.

"Boys, boys. You do know you're on the same team, right? You're going to have to get along. And I'm only here because Iruka asked me to wish you luck since he can't be here himself." She ruffled Sasuke hair again. "And I like you guys."

"Eh? Why can't Iruka be here?"

"He just had surgery because of an… incident a few days ago. He's pretty weak, but still expects you to do your best."

"He's hurt? I have to go see him then! Is he okay?"

"Weren't you listening dobe? He just had surgery and is weak. And you can't go see him."

"Teme! No one asked you! and I can go see him if I want!" Riz grabbed their shoulders tightly.

"Enough calling names. Iruka will be fine, and you have an exam to complete. You can see him afterwards, understood?" Both boys nodded. Sakura watched Riz with a slight glare.

"Hey! Let Sasuke go!" Riz rolled her eyes and released them. She patted them both on the head, mussing them both up. Naruto yelled indignantly and Sasuke squirmed, but neither pulled away. She grinned and gave them a mock salute.

"Later! Good luck with the forest, and don't get killed!" She disappeared just as Anko made her entrance.

Riz didn't stop grinning as she walked into Iruka's living room. He glanced up from his book and raised a brow, silently asking what had happened. She grinned and sat next to him.

"I wished Naruto luck like you asked. And the rest of the team too. And neither Sasuke nor Naruto moved away when I greeted them!" Iruka sighed.

"You messed with their hair, didn't you? Idiot, you're could be confusing them by acting like that. You may be Sasuke's sister, but Naruto considered you family too." Riz pouted and reached up to ruffle his hair. He grabbed her hand and pulled it down.

"Oh come on Ruka!"

"No." She frowned before smiling.

"Well… how about a date then?" Iruka reeled back in shock, almost falling off the couch.

"Wh-what?" She smiled at him.

"A date. It's when two people get together for an amount of time. Usually in a more romantic sense." He glared at her.

"I know what a date is. What I don't know is why you're asking me."

"I like you obviously."

"Does Kakashi know this?" She leaned back, her expression fading into neutral.

"He doesn't need to know. None of his business now is it? It's not like we're dating." Iruka glared daggers at her.

"It's unbelievably childish to be mad at him. Both of you need to stop pouting. You did dump him, but gave him a ridiculous reason. Just tell him the truth. Kiss and make up all ready."

"I did tell him the truth."

"The entire truth, not just part of it." She sighed.

"You know I hate it when you're right. Get some rest Ruka. I'll be back later tonight with some food for you."

"I can take care of myself."

"Please Ruka? It'll make me feel better to know I'm helping you." He sighed and waved her out, silently agreeing. Riz stepped outside and scowled before teleporting to Kakashi's window. She lingered there, not wanting to get impaled be whatever protection his apartment had, especially since she hadn't been there in a while. She bit her lip and carefully slid the window open, feeling his chakra sweep over her. She shivered and peeked in, ducking again as the motion set off a few traps. She tried again and managed to slip into the apartment with only minor scrapes and burns. She sighed and activated her sharingan to make it to the bedroom safely. She scowled and fell onto the bed.

"Overkill Kashi… definitely overkill…" She closed her eyes and quickly fell asleep. She woke up when she was thrown against a wall. She had a kunai out and in a defensive stance before she even hit the ground. She blinked up to see a very pissed off copy nin and slowly lowered her kunai. She set it on the ground in an attempt to appease the man. He advanced on her anyway, grabbing her throat and lifting her up.

"Ah… Kashi… wait…"

"What are you doing here? Who said you could come here?" She flinched at the ice in his voice.

"I… wanted to see you… Kashi." He let her go and she slumped onto the floor, rubbing her throat. He loomed above her.

"Get out." He hissed at her and she flinched again, tears springing to her eyes.

"Can I talk to you?"

"No."

"Please Kashi… At least let me talk. Explain."

"Explain? You did that pretty well all ready. Now leave." She stayed on the floor until he grabbed her again. She grabbed his arm to prevent him from throwing her out.

"I'm not leaving you again!" He set her down slowly.

"Again? I'm not giving you the chance to do it a third time." He turned and walked away from her. She stared blankly at the wall before walking to stand in the doorway to his room. He was laying on the bed, facing away from her. She stared at him for a minute before speaking.

"I'm sorry Kashi. I didn't tell you the entire truth when I broke up with you. It was only partly because you need to move on and quit holding onto the past… onto me." He didn't move and she took a deep breath. "I don't want you to become a target because of me. It's safer to not be associated with me at all. I've all ready put the entire village in more risk than I should have, but you most of all because of how close I am… was to you. I just… don't want to be a bother, or to drag you down with me." She closed her eyes and made a decision. "Which is why I am going to leave the village after the chuunin exams are over." Her eyes snapped back open when Kakashi grabbed her. She looked up into a pair of furious mismatched eyes.

"You're what?" She glanced to the side and Kakashi shook her. "You fool! You can't just leave the village again! And who ever said I needed protection?" She tried to cut him off and he glared at her. "You are going to let me finish." She nodded once and watched as he let her go. "I was not completely hanging onto the past. Maybe a little bit, but not completely. I still like you, even now and not just the damn memory! I don't care if I become a target for you because I'm a target all ready just from being me. It is not safer to stay away from you if nothing else than because I intend to fight for the village when the time comes, and danger is part of my job. You are not a bother, you are not going to drag me down, you are not going to take all of this on by yourself, and you are not going to leave this village or me again!" Kakashi glared as he finished and she stared at him in shock. She had never seen him get so angry except for once when someone had insulted Obito's honor. She had laughed then, but now that she was on the receiving end…

Kakashi's face softened when he saw her slightly shocked face and walked over to her. When she didn't respond he did the first thing that came to mind. He drew down his mask and kissed her. She jolted back at the contact and blindly reached for the wall.

"Kashi…" He smiled and gave her a mock bow.

"Would you like to go on a date with me? I'll pay." She smiled lightly back at him.

"Hmm… I'm not that hungry… Perhaps there's something else we can do? And it doesn't even have to cost." Kakashi smirked evilly and pulled her towards him, kissing her fully as he led her through his door.

"Of course. Only the best for you."

She ran to Iruka's house five hours later with some sandwiches, hurriedly pulling her mussed hair up and tying the hitai-ai back on. She skidded in front of his door and knocked as she made sure she wasn't completely disheveled. Iruka opened the door and smacked her.

"Where have you been? You said you'd be back, and normally that means at a reasonable time!" He paused as he took in her appearance and sighed. "You talked to Kakashi then?" She nodded and held up the sandwiches.

"Yeah, and I brought dinner like I promised." Iruka sighed as he glanced her over again.

"All right. So, did he attack you?"

"Yes, but I did manage to explain everything to him."

"Are you hurt? How'd he react after you talked?" She shrugged and set the food down.

"He was pissed. He lectured me." Iruka laughed.

"I knew he'd be mad. You only had stupid reasons after all." Iruka paused and looked up at her. "So if he lectured you… Why did you take so long, and why do you look like that?"

"Look like what? And it took a while to talk with him…" Iruka glared at her.

"Riz… You look thoroughly mussed up. Now tell me the truth." She ducked and smiled sheepishly.

"Well… we're dating again?" Iruka threw a book at her.

"Congratulations. I'm so happy my advice led to you two getting back together and having such an obviously wonderful time!" He threw another book at her.

"Whoa! Ruka, sorry! I thought you wanted us back together? And I brought the food like I promised!" She dodged another book and grabbed his arm. "Calm down Ruka. You're supposed to be resting."

"There is no way I'm going to be able to sleep knowing that my best friend since school is with Kakashi like that. And just what do you plan to do if Itachi finds out? Or anyone else for that matter?" She froze.

"You're not going to tell anyone, are you?" Iruka glared at her before slumping onto the couch with a groan.

"You're impossible Riz. Absolutely impossible." She laughed and sat next to him with a smirk.

"You know… Kashi's amazing." He pushed her down and glared at her half-heartedly.

"Thanks for the food. Now get out." She laughed and did as he asked. She opened her door with a grin. Kakashi smiled at her and held out a hand. He hadn't bothered to put his mask or a shirt on, obviously having teleported there.

"How's Iruka?"

"Mad. It was his idea for me to actually go talk with you in the first place, but now he's mad that we're dating again." She shook her head. "I don't understand that man." Kakashi chuckled and wrapped his arms around her.

"Yes you do. You know exactly why he's mad." He smirked, "Or did you want to go over it again?" He kissed her neck and she chuckled and squirmed.

"So very tempting…" She sighed and pulled away. "But I do need to check on how the exams are going. You should too." He frowned and tried to grab her again. She danced away.

"Kashi… I'm going to check on your team and make sure everything's going well. I am also to report to the Hokage in case there is something else to do. Are you just going to stay here?" He sighed and shook his head glumly.

"No no, I'll come." She laughed and opened her door.

"You might want to get dressed first though." She left as he went to grab his clothes.

Kakashi landed silently beside her as Sasuke, Naruto, and Sakura tried to come up with a plan. Riz smiled and jumped away quickly, Kakashi following her to the Hokage Tower. She stood outside the door and made sure no one was there before going in.

"Hey old man!" He hardly bothered to glance up.

"How is Iruka?"

"He's doing fine. I'll check on him in the morning too unless you have something for me to do."

"You and Kakashi can help set up the stadium for the third part of the test since I see you're getting along again." He finally glanced up and raised a brow, making them both realize they still looked a bit disheveled. "Did you have fun making up?" He smiled at them and they looked away. "I want you both to get some sleep tonight and then report to the stadium to help. Also… try and at least look like you didn't spend the night with each other." Riz blushed and Kakashi slunk out the door. Sarutobi laughed as she soon followed. They got back to her apartment quickly and silently. Once the door was closed Riz slumped against a wall. She didn't have enough time to even begin to complain before Kakashi was dragging her off.

"Eh? Kashi!" He glanced back at her and smirked.

"What? We're supposed to get some sleep later, right?" She groaned.

"Stupid perverted jounin…"

Riz woke up and groaned as she shoved Kakashi off the bed. He landed heavily and grunted.

"Wha?"

"Get up. We have to go to the stadium. I'm gonna shower and then check on Iruka. Meet me at the stadium in 20 minutes or I'm banning you from my apartment."

"How can you manage plans and threats so early in the morning?" She smiled back at him, turning towards him.

"Practice love. Lots of practice. Get dressed." She closed the door, leaving Kakashi staring before he rolled over to get up. He made it to the stadium with less than a minute to spare. Riz smirked at him.

"Cutting it a bit close there darling?" He grinned.

"Maa… plenty of time." She laughed and they began to clear it out. They got it done later than it should have been thanks to Kakashi deciding to keep messing her up. She threw a rock at him once they were done.

"Bastard! Why were you trying so hard to make it take longer?" He just laughed and grabbed at her. She shied away and glared. "You do realize that I'm mad at you, don't you?"

"You'll get over it." She raised a brow.

"I know. Right after I get my revenge." He blanched and she cackled evilly before taking off.

"Revenge?" He caught up with her as she was leaving Hokage Tower. He grabbed her and she smiled.

"Something wrong Kashi?"

"What did you mean by revenge?"

"Hmm… Well, I've been entertaining a few ideas about that actually."

"Care to share?"

"Of course. One idea was collaborate with Iruka on a prank against you. Another was to talk to Gai about sleeping with you. Or Hiashi. Or-"

"Okay! I get it! Please don't Riz…" She smacked him.

"Are you insane? Don't call me that Hatake." He held up his hands in defense and smiled.

"Sorry, sorry."

"What's this? The great Kakashi is apologizing?" They turned to look at Anko, who was grinning evilly at them.

"Yo. What are you doing here Anko?"

"Oh nothing. Just keeping an eye out for spies, intruders, and traitors." Riz inwardly groaned, but Kakashi smiled.

"Then you should probably get going. I'm sure there are plenty about that deserve your attention."

"I would, but there's one so close here." Kakashi answered before Riz could do anything.

"I'm hurt Anko. After all we've been through, and you still call me an intruder. I only snuck into your place one time after all. I thought you'd be over it by now." Riz pulled away to stare at him.

"You snuck into her place? When was I going to find out about this?" He rubbed the back of his head.

"Now apparently." She glared at him.

"When did you do this?"

"Before you came to the village, don't worry Atsura." She frowned.

"Why did you sneak into her place? Are you interested in her?"

"Wha? No! Not at all!"

"… Would you do it again?"

"Maa… maybe." There was a pause as Kakashi realized the implications of what he said and his eye widened as he took a step back. "Wait… I didn't mean-"

"That is enough! I don't want to hear it! If she's so terribly interesting then don't let me stop you! Have fun jerk!" She disappeared and Anko looked over at him with an apologetic smile.

"Okay, so she's not who I thought she was." He glared.

"Who did you think she was?"

"Uchiha Riz. She looks just like her after all."

"Riz is dead Anko. Or did you forget that all ready?" His voice was cold and Anko's eyes widened slightly.

"Hey look, I'm sorry okay? Of course I haven't forgotten that." She scrabbled for an excuse. "Maybe I just miss her. You have to admit though; Atsura does look a lot like Riz would."

"Did you need anything else Anko? If not, I'm leaving." She shook her head and Kakashi disappeared. He groaned and flopped onto his bed, shooting a glare into the corner. Riz stepped out of the shadows and sat next to him, making him roll over to look at her.

"So… you snuck into Anko's apartment?"

"Yeah. I didn't think she'd get back so soon." Riz laughed.

"She caught you! That's hilarious! Ah, I wish I could've seen that."

"Sorry, but you were dead at the time." She glanced over at him.

"I know, and you know why." She smiled as he turned back onto his stomach. A smirk played across her face as she crawled over him, "Mmm… Kashi… Are you mad? You know I was just acting to get Anko's suspicions lifted." He didn't answer and she bit his ear. "Would you have rather I told her the truth too? Become friends with her again?" He ignored her and she smirked, pulling some chakra wire from her pocket and silently beginning to wrap it around his wrists. She went slowly enough to not arouse suspicion from the annoyed jounin beneath her. She tightened it suddenly and he jerked up, only to find that his movement was limited as she tied his legs to his hands. "Don't forget that I was still planning my revenge on you love. And if I told Anko the truth, it would make it so much more enjoyable. Of course, now that her suspicions are gone I can use her without the truth."

"Hey wait! Let me go!" She kissed him lightly before gagging him and pulling his mask back up.

"Not a chance. However, these clothes have to go. They won't fit with the ribbons I just got. Red's okay with you right?"

"Nnng! Mmph! Lmf Mmh Gggh!"

"I thought so. It will look wonderful after all. I'm sure Anko will agree once I drop you off tonight too." She grinned evilly and Kakashi struggled harder.

An hour later and Riz was standing outside Anko's door with a dejected jounin tied up next to her. He had given up trying to get free after she had put the finishing touches on his 'outfit', figuring out that if he did manage to get free from the wire, the ribbons would have him tied down into a different, less comfortable and more embarrassing, position. Riz finished picking the lock and hauled him inside. She dumped him onto the bed and smiled as she put a note on the dresser. Kakashi managed to read it first and his eye widened.

"_Dear Anko, I brought you a gift as a sign that I don't mind the misunderstanding. Not to mention I thought that since he had snuck in once before, he might like to be back here. Especially now that he's all dressed up. Don't forget to open the 'present'! It works the best when you pull off the ribbon in his hair first. Enjoy, Atsura."_ Riz smiled at him and stroked his cheek lightly before leaving him alone.

"Nnng!"

* * *

Kakashi stormed into her apartment before dawn two days later and hauled her out of bed. She glanced up at him before trying to go back to sleep. He proceeded to drag her out of the apartments and throw her into a lake. She caught herself and stood in the middle of the water with a smirk.

"Something wrong love? Or did you just want me wet?" He scowled and launched himself at her. She sidestepped him and sighed as she walked back to shore. She looked back at him and shook her head. "You're overreacting. You knew I was going to take my revenge on you and you let your guard down completely. Now my revenge is complete and it's in the past."

"No it's not. It's on camera." He growled out. Riz held back a laugh and walked back out to him. Once sure he wasn't going to hit her she wrapped her arms around him.

"Okay Kashi. I'll get the pictures from her. Stop pouting; we have work to do. In two days the next part of the chuunin exams will start and we have to watch them. And after that we can help train whoever passes."

"And why would I want to do that?"

"Because Sasuke and Naruto are more than likely to pass and Sakura has a chance depending on who she gets paired with. As their jounin leader you have an obligation to watch them and to train at least one of them once they pass. If they pass. I should say if." Kakashi glanced at her.

"If? Are you doubting my teaching skills?"

"Teaching skills? I didn't know you had any to doubt." He pushed her and walked away. Riz laughed and went to find Anko.

She calmly snuck into Kakashi's apartment the morning of the preliminaries. She smiled at his sleeping form and began to post the pictures around the room before sliding into bed with him. He cracked an eye open before moving over and wrapping an arm around her. She laughed lightly and leaned over him with a smirk.

"Good morning Kashi. We get to watch the fights today. Get up." He pulled her down roughly and smirked against her neck.

"I don't want to get up. There's so much to do here." Riz bit his neck.

"We're watching the prelims today. Get up now and I'll make it worthwhile afterwards. Unless no one passes of course." Kakashi kissed her quickly and stood up, making her laugh again. He grinned and left for the tower.

* * *

Riz smiled as Sasuke began his fight until the curse mark tried to activate. After Sasuke managed to control it she shot a glare at Kakashi. He held up a hand and promised to take care of it. Riz nodded tersely and focused her full attention back on the match. She let Kakashi get him after he won as she made a clone and went in search of Anko. She tapped her on the shoulder and Anko turned to look at her.

"Hey Atsura."

"Where is the snake?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Where is that damn snake?"

"You mean Orochimaru? I don't know where he went. We're still looking for him. Why? How did you know he was even here?"

"I want to rip his balls off and kill him for having the gall to mark my brother! So if you don't know where he is maybe you can tell me where to find Kabuto." Anko paused to stare at her.

"…Brother? What do you mean? And Kabuto is part of Konoha…"

"No he is not! He is that damn snake's right-hand man! Now where is he?" Anko grabbed her shoulder.

"I don't know. Now why don't you tell me about your brother?" Riz glared at her.

"You figured it out before. I'll explain it all to you later. I'm going back to watch the rest of the matches and to look for the snake. Goodbye Anko." Riz turned sharply and stalked away. She didn't manage to find either Kabuto or Orochimaru by the time the matches were over so she went back to congratulate Naruto. Kakashi came over and congratulated him as well, assuring them that Sasuke was fine. Naruto asked Kakashi to train him and Kakashi said he got someone else to train him because he was going to train Sasuke. Naruto groaned and Kakashi grabbed Riz's shoulder.

"You okay?"

"Not really. I didn't manage to find Orochimaru and now I have to explain everything to Anko." She sighed. "How's Sasuke?"

"He'll be fine. I sealed the curse mark and he's resting now. I'm going to start training him tomorrow. What are you going to do?"

"Well, I'm still an ANBU so I'll have that. I think I'll train Sakura. It'll be good for her and should keep me occupied. Just… take care of Sasuke, okay?" He nodded and led her away.

"I got up this morning. You said you'd make it worthwhile." He grinned and she laughed lightly.

* * *

Riz and Sakura strolled up to the stadium a month later, chatting about the training and different ways to solve problems. They parted ways once inside when an ANBU came up to tell her she was in charge of watching the genin to make sure no fights broke out prematurely. Riz happily went and looked over them all. She finally shrugged and went up to the sand siblings.

"Yo! How're you three? Enjoying the exam?" They looked at her strangely for a moment. Riz just smiled. "Can't decide huh? Does it depend on whether or not you pass? I guess I can understand that. When I took a chuunin exam it was completely different though. Kind of by myself. Must be nice to go through it with other people."

"So you're a chuunin?" Kankuro asked her.

"Oh no, of course not. I want to be, but no."

"So you're a genin too." She blinked before laughing.

"Oh hell no! I hated being a genin! I only managed it a week!" Gaara glanced at her again for a moment.

"So are you even a ninja then? And what level?" Temari finally asked.

"I'm in ANBU. Don't want to be, but I didn't get a choice. Anyway, you're from Suna right? Nice village."

"You're crazy."

"Who would just give away that information?"

"Obviously that would be me. Like I said, I didn't want to be in ANBU. I find it annoying. So… Is there a reason he isn't talking to me?" She pointed at Gaara.

"Why would he?"

"Because I'm talking to all of you." Gaara continued to ignore her and she went up to him, leaning around so they were face-to-face. He glared at her and she felt sand wrap around her before tossing her away. She caught herself on the wall and laughed again. "At least you responded." Temari and Kankuro stared at her in shock.

"Are you trying to get yourself killed?" She looked at them with a smile.

"He won't kill me."

"I will." Gaara looked at her coolly, glaring when she laughed again.

"No you won't. That would be ridiculous. You would get disqualified from the exam, have to leave, and it could be taken as a declaration of war…" She watched carefully when they looked away as she said that. She sighed and righted herself onto the ground. "All right… Don't start any fights or even continue one if someone else starts one. I'm in charge of keeping the peace. Later." She waved and walked back to the main group. She leaned on the railing to watch the matches, keeping alert to her surroundings and cheering for Naruto when he beat Neji. Riz made sure to study the Kazekage when Sasuke's match was delayed. Something just didn't seem right. She shook her head and looked around at the genin again, her eyes lingering on the sand siblings again, eyes narrowing when Kankuro withdrew. She looked over everyone watching the matches, constantly looking back up to the Kazekage and Hokage and to the sand siblings. She stared down at the matches with a frown as she tried to figure out what was causing her unease. She smiled when Kakashi finally appeared with Sasuke, but it disappeared when Gaara went down to fight against him. Kakashi came up next to her and patted her shoulder with a grin.

"He did well… What's wrong?"

"Something's not right, but I can't figure out what. The Kazekage seemed too intent on having the fight between Sasuke and Gaara and the sand team seems to be waiting for something and are on edge. Add in the fact that I never was able to find Orochimaru or Kabuto and you get a recipe for disaster."

"Kabuto? You knew Kabuto was with Orochimaru and you didn't tell anyone?" Her head whipped around to look at him.

"Why? Have you seen him?"

"Not since he tried to kill Sasuke after I sealed the curse mark." Riz stared at him in shock before looking down at the battle.

"I'm sorry… I never thought…"

"You never thought to be honest with us. That curse mark could have been prevented."

"I did say Orochimaru was here before the exam… Oh no…" Kakashi looked back to see Gaara emerge from his sand half transformed. Riz looked over to see everyone falling asleep and leapt away to help, Kakashi following her. They saw Sasuke follow after Gaara and sent a team after them before looking up to see a barrier around the Hokage.

"Go help them! Gai and I can handle this!" Riz immediately left and nodded to the other ANBU there. She looked inside to see Orochimaru fighting the Hokage and began to try and figure out the barrier. Eventually she gathered with the ANBU to simultaneously attack only one corner to weaken it. It was time consuming, but the only way and they had all ready lost any visual on what was happening inside. When they finally did manage to break through the four holding the barrier disappeared and they saw Orochimaru standing over the Hokage. Kabuto appeared next to him and they disappeared before the ANBU could get to them. Riz skidded down next to Sarutobi and checked his vitals before shaking her head and laying him down carefully. She stood and went to help with the remaining invaders, letting the others take care of his body.

She stood next to Kakashi on the hospital roof a few days later and surveyed the damage. Many buildings had been destroyed, but there were very few casualties. Kakashi wrapped his arms around her when she sighed.

"It could've been worse. Much worse."

"It could've been prevented. I should never have hidden information from everyone. I should have realized what was going on with the sand."

"Yep, you should have told us. But there's no way in knowing if it could have been prevented. Come on, we should get ready for the funeral." She pulled away from him with a shake of her head.

"I'm not going. I'm on guard duty. Place a flower for me." She disappeared and Kakashi went to find his team.

A few weeks later, after Tsunade became the new Hokage, and Riz was searching for Sasuke. Kakashi had told her he had fought with Naruto and was getting too emerged in his thirst for vengeance. She bit her lip and sped over the rooftops until she found him in his apartment. She let herself in and dodged when he attacked her. She eyed his pack before grabbing his arm.

"Come with me, we need to talk."

"Let go of me. Nothing you say will change my mind." She looked at him and smiled.

"I'm not trying to change your mind. I just want you to understand. I'm going to tell you the truth."

"The truth of what?" He yanked his arm away and Riz leaned against the wall.

"You'll just have to come talk to me. I'll be waiting for you at Uchiha Manor." She flipped through the window and he finished packing before following her. He came up beside her and she walked inside without a word, heading towards her room. She smiled at him.

"I'm glad you came." He shrugged and she sighed. "Sit down Sasuke. This may take a while." He sat across from her and she began to explain everything to him, starting with why the massacre actually happened. Sasuke shook his head when she had finished.

"How would you know all of this? You weren't there."

"Yes, I was. I was born here Sasuke and I stayed with Itachi after the massacre. I never died like you thought… I'm Riz." She got onto the floor in front of him. "And I am so sorry for lying to you. I thought it was for the best. You were so young and innocent when it happened that I didn't want to crush the image you had of our family." He stepped away from her, his eyes wide.

"That's not possible… I saw your body. And Itachi…"

"You know I'm not lying Sasuke. You'd seen me make lifelike dolls before and you know Itachi wouldn't just snap like that." He slumped against the wall and slid to the floor, head in one hand.

"… My entire life has been a lie then."

"No… not all of it. You have to understand Sasuke; we did what we had to for both you and the village."

"You could've taken me with you."

"It was safer for you here. You had a life here, and could make friends and would be protected. You could've been killed with us. We didn't know what we were going to do and would never put you in such a situation." He nodded slightly and she sat next to him, patted his head.

"Now what am I supposed to do?" She sighed.

"I have a favor to ask of you, but it's not very nice." He glanced at her.

"What?"

"Go to Orochimaru."

"What?"

"I'm sorry, but it's the best plan I can think of. You'll get some training and should get strong enough to kill him. You can continue to act as if Itachi is your sworn enemy, hopefully fooling him as well. Once Orochimaru is killed you will most likely meet up with Itachi and you two can fight as he planned. He planned to have you kill him, but I would much rather keep you both alive. Sometime during the fight you would hit him with this." She pulled out a small needle. "It's drugged and would give him all the appearance of death."

"And then you'll get him back to Konoha?" She nodded.

"Hopefully. It partially depends Tsunade. I have yet to talk with her. She would have to agree to heal him."

"And if she doesn't?"

"Then I'm going to have to heal him the best I can and find someone else to finish it. But back to my plan. Most likely after you kill Itachi a member of the Akatsuki will show up and want you to join him. He's the actual leader of the Akatsuki and very powerful. His name is Madara Uchiha. He's completely mastered the sharingan, but still desires more power. He wants to rule the world, but I'm not sure how he plans to accomplish it completely. This part is completely up to you. You can either join him, or come back to Konoha. Just know that if you decide to come back to Konoha the battle against Madara will begin and you will have to let me know. You don't have to decide now." He was quiet for a while.

"How would I let you know?" She handed him a tagged kunai.

"This is linked to my chakra. Set off the tag, and I'll come. You can use it whenever you need to. Even if it's for help with Orochimaru or to talk. I can always make more tags. Sasuke… you don't have to do any of this. You can stay in Konoha instead. I can figure something else out." He shook his head and stood up.

"I'm leaving." She nodded and got up as well. She smiled down at him sadly before kissing his forehead.

"I love you little brother. Be safe." He nodded and left. Riz waited for a minute before going back to her apartment to sleep, glad Kakashi was staying at his for the night. She wrapped her arms around herself and hoped she had made the right choice.

Early the next morning she went to talk to Tsunade, making sure to get there before she was alerted to Sasuke's disappearance. She entered Tsunade's room and woke her up, dodging the attack it resulted in. Tsunade was up in an instant and ready to fight her. She scowled as she relaxed and sat down.

"What do you want Atsura?"

"I came to ask you if you could heal someone if I ever get him in the village. He's very ill."

"What's wrong with him?"

"He has a lung disease and it's killing him. Before I came to the village I would try to alleviate the symptoms and stop it from progressing, but could never actually heal him." Tsunade eyed her warily.

"What are you hiding from me Atsura?"

"Well… He's not exactly a friend of Konoha according to the bingo book, but he's not evil. It was all just a misunderstanding." Tsunade glared at her as she stood.

"Who is it?"

"… Itachi Uchiha." Tsunade was quiet as she grabbed Riz and held her against the wall.

"You were helping him? Do you even know what he's done? And to have helped him you would've had to be in the Akatsuki!" Riz grabbed Tsunade's arm when air became scarce and she loosened her hold, but remained holding her.

"If you'll just let me explain…"

"Explain how you've been helping the enemy?"

"He's not the enemy. Even if you distrust me, please trust Sarutobi's decision to let me stay here."

"He knew?"

"More than you do… Can you put me down?" Tsunade dropped her with a scowl.

"I'll listen to you, but make it quick. I don't want to waste my time on a criminal." Riz nodded quickly.

"The Uchiha massacre happened because they were planning to take over the village. They were sick of being blamed for the Kyuubi attack and thought themselves better and shouldn't have to listen to the Hokage or belittled by being a police force. No information about Konoha was ever actually given to the Akatsuki. Itachi isn't an enemy; he just did what he believed to be right and prevented a war. So please, can you heal him?"

"Why should I believe you? How would you even know most of this and why would he have told you?" Tsunade clenched her fists, ready to attack her. Riz held up her hands.

"He didn't tell me. I was there. I helped him kill our clan and we stayed together until I came back here to Konoha under the name Atsura." Tsunade hit her, sending her flying into a wall.

"You're telling me that you've lied to the entire village after killing a well respected clan and joining the Akatsuki. Why did you even bother coming back?"

"Because I love this village and the people in it! It was torture to leave in the first place but I couldn't just stay here!" She slowly stood up and faced Tsunade. "I can understand your anger and distrust, but please don't take it out on Itachi or anyone else. It was my decision to not stay in the village and to lie when I came back. I can't change that and am prepared to face the consequences." Tsunade watched her for a moment before relaxing her hands and sitting down.

"All right… I believe you. You told Sarutobi all of this?"

"He figured out who I was first, but yes."

"Who else knows who you are?"

"Kakashi, Iruka, Hiashi, Gai, Anko, and Shin."

"You didn't bother telling Sasuke?" Riz looked down."

"… I didn't want him to hate me for leaving. And he never knew about the clan's treachery." She sighed. "I probably should. Kakashi told me he's become even more focused on power and revenge lately." Tsunade nodded.

"I suppose that makes sense. Make sure to let me know when you do decide to tell him the truth. Now go, I'm sure you have things to do." Riz looked at her warily.

"You never said whether or not you would heal Itachi."

"If and when you get him to me, I will. I'll do everything I can for him." Riz smiled.

"Thank you." She disappeared and went to go find Kakashi and Iruka to finish rebuilding his house. They had just finished refurnishing the place when Anko came up to them. She didn't give them time to greet her.

"Tsunade wants to see you Kakashi." She looked over at Riz sadly. "I'm so sorry." She disappeared with Kakashi and Iruka looked over at her confused face.

"Sorry for what?"

"I have no idea. Let's go find out." Iruka ran after her, grabbing her arm just outside the Hokage Tower.

"Wait. Kakashi will probably tell us…" He trailed off when they saw Kakashi jump out a window and head out of the village, followed by Anko and a few ANBU. Riz looked back at Iruka.

"Apparently he won't. Come on." Iruka followed her, cringing when she slammed open the door.

"Did you know?"

"Know what?"

"About Sasuke." Riz looked at her cautiously.

"What about Sasuke? Is he hurt?"

"He easily could be. He left the village last night. I sent a team out to get him right away and now Kakashi and the others."

"He… left? Why?"

"He went to Orochimaru to gain power." Riz slumped to the floor in shock and stared at Tsunade. Iruka knelt down next to her.

"They'll get him back." She shook her head.

"I'll make sure of it." She got up and turned to leave when Tsunade grabbed her shoulder.

"You're not going." She glared at the woman.

"Yes I am."

"No you're not. The others should be able to bring him back, and if they can't then he'll be long gone by the time you'd get there." Riz clenched her fists, but didn't try to leave.

"You expect me to just stay here and wait?"

"No. I expect you to listen to me and not go after them. What you do while they're gone is up to you." Riz nodded and walked out, Iruka closely following her. She eventually sighed and looked back at him.

"You don't have to follow me. I'm not going after them."

"I know… Are you okay?"

"Yeah… I'll be fine." She smiled at him. "I'm just going to wait in my apartment, okay? I'll see you later Iruka." He nodded and she disappeared.

Kakashi crept into her apartment as soon as he had gotten Naruto into the hospital. He stood at the end of her bed and watched her sleep for a moment. She finally turned over and looked up at him. She watched him for a moment before moving to stand directly in front of him.

"Sasuke?" She whispered. He shook his head and pulled her close.

"I'm sorry. So very sorry." She hugged him back loosely and closed her eyes.

"Don't be. It's not your fault." She pulled away and smiled slightly at him, "Tell me what happened."

"The team sent after him all came close to dying. If Gaara and his team hadn't shown up and helped them I'm sure some of them would have. Naruto fought Sasuke alone and was almost killed too. He was gone before I got there." She took a step back and nodded.

"But he's all right, isn't he? Sasuke… Sasuke didn't actually…"

"He'll be fine. I took him to the hospital before coming here." She just sat back on her bed with a sigh and wrapped her arms around her legs. Kakashi sat behind her and pulled her close again. "Naruto hasn't given up. He promised Sakura he'd bring him back and you know how he is with promises… It'll be okay."

"Kashi… please stop trying to cheer me up. I understand what happened and I know there's nothing I can do about it other than wait and hope for the best. The main thing I'm worried about is what Orochimaru is going to do, or try to do to him."

"… Really? You really don't care that your brother has left the village for Orochimaru in order to gain enough power to kill Itachi?" She pulled away from him and glared.

"Of course I care. There's just nothing that can be done. Now if you're still going to insist on cheering me up, I want you out of my apartment. Go cheer up Iruka instead." He held up his hands and disappeared. Riz sighed again and flopped down onto the bed. "… Same for you Itachi." He walked calmly through the door and sat on her. She rolled her eyes and pushed him over so she could sit up.

"You're hiding something."

"What could I possibly be hiding now?"

"Something about Sasuke. You're not nearly as upset as you should be."

"Excuse me for being a shinobi and accepting the fact that he chose to leave."

"You didn't go after him."

"Neither did you. And I wasn't allowed. I tried."

"He wants to kill me, and you want me to try and retrieve him?" She glared at him.

"Get out Itachi. Get out right now. Go play with the fish or something." He disappeared and Riz rolled her eyes before laying back down to sleep.

Two days later and Riz watched Naruto leave with Jaraiya. She smiled after they left and Sakura went to train with Tsunade. She stretched and looked up at the sky.

"They're going to be great shinobi one day…" She lowered her voice and whispered, "All three of them."

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**Well? I do hope you all enjoyed this chapter! I'm really trying to get this story back on track and to even finish it soon(ish)! review please!**


	14. 13:Fates of Orochimaru and Itachi?

**This chapter is dedicated to ILOVEANIME123 for reviewing out of the blue and cheering me up on a horrid horrid day while I was sick. So thank this lovely person for otherwise this chapter would have not been finished! THANK THEM!**

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Three Years Later

"Sakura! Hey! Wait up!' Sakura looked back at Riz with a groan.

"Let me guess. You just got back from a mission and don't want to go see Lady Tsunade."

"Good guess."

"No."

"Oh come on Sakura, it's not even that bad this time. Please?" Sakura sighed.

"All right Atsura, let me see it." Riz grinned and rolled up her sleeve, revealing the gash traveling down her upper arm.

"I thought you said it wasn't that bad!"

"It's not. Well… compared to my last mission at least." Sakura glared at her as her hand began to glow and the wound slowly closed.

"I should start charging you for this." She laughed.

"I'd be broke within a month!" Sakura laughed too, turning when Riz grinned and she heard her name.

"Sakura! Hey Sakura! Hey Atsura!" Sakura grinned when Naruto ran up to them.

"Naruto! You're back!" Riz smiled and turned to leave.

"Hey Atsura, where are you going?"  
"I still have a report to turn in. I'll see you later." She waved. "Glad to have you back Naruto!" She ran back to the Hokage Tower and grinned when she walked in her office.

"Tsunade! Naruto's back! I finished my mission just in… time…" She handed over her report and looked down at a newly appeared mark on her arm. Tsunade looked over to see the Uchiha crest as it began to fade.

"What is that?" Riz stared at her arm for a minute before biting a thumb and making a drop of blood fall on the spot. A small map appeared and she studied it for a minute before turning to leave. Tsunade instantly jumped up and grabbed her. "Where are you going?"

"I need to find… Itachi. He's overdo for a healing."

"And the mark?"

"Letting me know he's overdo and where he is." Tsunade glared at her and pushed her into a chair.

"You're lying to me Riz. Now tell me the truth!" Riz winced as Tsunade increased the pressure on her wrist.

"Okay! Let go!" Tsunade let her go and leaned against the desk.

"Well?"

"I do need to see Itachi too, but this… is for someone else. I really need to leave now Tsunade. I promise to explain later." Tsunade sighed and waved a hand.

"If you're going to take more than a day, you need to let me know." Riz nodded and ran off, quickly leaving the village. She glanced back at the map to make sure she was going the right direction and sped up, berating herself for not making the kunai able to let her teleport there. She finally made it to the spot on the map and looked around before crawling through a hole and dropping into a tunnel. She looked around before feeling something on her arm. She glanced back down to see a new map. She smiled and followed it, ending up outside a plain door. Taking a deep breath, she silently opened the door and peeked in. Seeing only the figure sleeping on the bed, she let her chakra flare out for a moment to check for others. She instantly masked her chakra again and slipped inside when the figure woke. She stood silently in a corner and waited as he got up and looked around. He looked into the corner and relaxed before sitting back down.

"You came." She stepped towards him.

"I told you I would." She sat next to him and ran a hand through his hair. "Tell me what's going on."

"Orochimaru plans to take my body for himself tomorrow."

"Are you strong enough to kill him?"

"Yes." She paused and sat back to look at him.

"Then why did you call me? Tsunade nearly threw a fit."

"So he could see that I know you're alive." She tilted her head and he smirked. "He talks about you."

"Anything good?" Sasuke clenched his fists.

"No."

"So he called me some names and upset you, so now you want him to see that you know I'm fine before you kill him."

"Yes." She chuckled under her breath.

"So protective. He… didn't do anything to you, right?"

"What do you mean?" She shook her head.

"Never mind. How do you know his plans? Surely he didn't tell you."

"Kabuto. Is he afraid of you, or just likes you?"

"Probably both. Come on, you wanted to kill him tonight, right?" He nodded and led the way to Orochimaru's room. He let himself in and attacked the snake-man, waiting to deliver the final blow. He smirked when Orochimaru tried to bargain with him.

"You can't kill me… I know something… something about your sister." Riz pushed the door open and leaned on the frame.

"And just what is it you know about me?" His eyes widened and Sasuke killed him. Riz smiled and he led the way back out.

"Sasuke… what are you going to do now?"

"Find Itachi."

"Alone?" He glanced back at her.

"No. There are people here that I can take with me."

"And you can trust them."

"If not, I can kill them."

"… That's a dangerous way of thinking." She sighed and stopped where she had come in. "I should go. Here's two more kunai; don't forget to let me know when you've fought… killed Itachi. You still have the needle, right?" He nodded and grabbed the kunai from her.

"Tsunade agreed then."

"Yes. I talked with her the morning after you left. Sasuke… are you sure you want to go through with this? You could come back to Konoha now. I can easily find Itachi and bring him to the village on my own."

"How would you find Madara then?"

"I have friends in the Akatsuki. I could ask them." He watched her for a moment before shaking his head.

"No. I'll fight Itachi. I won't be allowed back in the village anyway."

"You don't know that." She sighed, "I don't want you to feel obligated for any of this. I shouldn't have asked you to leave in the first place." He smiled at her.

"If you hadn't talked to me, I would have left and never wanted to go back. I would kill Itachi and eventually find out a twisted view of the truth. I'd probably hate Konoha." She hugged him.

"But you don't, right?"

"I can't as long as you're a part of it." He slowly hugged her back. She sighed again.

"Kabuto is coming. You should go gather your recruits. I have to see Itachi. Be safe little brother." He nodded and pulled away.

"Goodbye sister." She watched him leave before quickly climbing out. She blinked in the harsh sunlight before looking down at her arm. She shrugged and took off towards one of the Akatsuki hideouts. She hesitated outside the building, unsure whether it would be safe to enter. She finally shrugged and stepped inside, a hand immediately landing on her shoulder. She jumped and spun around to face whoever it was, relaxing slightly when she realized who it was.

"Konan… How are you?"

"You shouldn't be here."

"I'm looking for Itachi. I need to know how he's doing and if he needs any healing." She shook her head.

"He's fine. I have personally been taking care of him. Now go." She nodded and backed away, confused by the abnormally harsh tone.

"Okay… Ano… Are you okay Konan?" The woman glared at her.

"Other than the fact that you promised to end a war before it started and save both your brothers and that has yet to happen?" Riz winced.

"I'm working on it. It's not the easiest task. I'll still manage it."

"When?" Riz looked at her strangely.

"Soon. Why are you so upset about it suddenly?"

"… Will I be able to join Konoha?"

"I… I'm not sure. I'd have to talk to Tsunade and the council and probably sell my soul, but it's possible."

"I would like to… soon." Konan's irritation faded away. Riz looked her up and down before her eyes widened and she stumbled back a step.

"No way… Konan… Are you…?" She shook her head and Konan turned to leave.

"You should leave." She paused for a moment before adding; "Do not tell Iruka."

"I won't, but you should. I'll make sure to try and speed up my plans, but it doesn't all depend on me." Konan nodded and disappeared. Riz smiled and headed back to Konoha. She made it back before the sun had risen the next day and immediately went to see Tsunade. She paused outside the door and bit her lip, not wanting to talk with the woman. She finally sighed and opened the door, looking directly into angry eyes.

"You're late."

"It has barely been a full day. I did manage to make it back in time. Didn't even let myself rest just so I could."

"Did you see Itachi?"

"No, I wasn't able to. Konan's looking after him for me."

"Sit." Riz sighed again and sat down.

"You're mad."

"You're just lucky you did make it back in time."

"I would have sent word if I wasn't going to."

"Just tell me why you left and what that mark was for."

"Sasuke."

"What?"

"I lied to you Tsunade. When I told you who I was, I had all ready talked to Sasuke. I told him the truth the night he left."

"And he still left regardless."

"Well… He wasn't going to after that so… I asked him to." Riz flinched minutely at the sudden surge of killer intent.

"You asked him to?" She hissed out. "You asked him to abandon the village and join Orochimaru? He almost killed Naruto!"

"I didn't realize that Naruto would go after him like that. At least he didn't kill him."

"Get out."

"Tsunade…"

"Get out of this office and this village before I have you arrested." Riz held up her hands with widening eyes.

"Please Tsunade, let me explain."

"No! I'm sick of your explanations! I'm sick of you going behind everyone's back and deciding what to do! You can't be trusted and I will not let you put people's lives on the line just so you can play games!"

"It's not a game! Please, I'll tell you everything."

"You should have done that in the beginning. You have a day to leave. Goodbye Riz." Tsunade strode past her and Riz stared at the desk for a minute before running after her. She searched the entire tower before finally going back to her apartment. She sat on a chair and looked around. She bit her lip when Kakashi walked in.

"Where have you been?" She didn't answer and he sat across from her. "What's wrong?"

"I have to leave the village."

"What? I thought we decided against that!" She shook her head.

"It's not my choice. Tsunade said I had to. I have today to leave before she arrests me."

"…I'm going to go talk to her."

"No… It's my fault. I lied to her… to all of you."

"What do you mean?"

"Yesterday, I went to see Sasuke. He called me to him." She sighed, "I had told him the truth before he left the village and asked him to go to Orochimaru, acting as if he knew nothing."

"Why? You hate Orochimaru. You didn't want him anywhere near Sasuke."

"Because it was the best idea I could come up with. I had planned to have Sasuke kill Orochimaru and then go after Itachi. Sometime during the fight Sasuke would slip him a drug that would, for all effects, kill Itachi. He would then let me know and I could get Itachi to Konoha and save him. After that… the fight against the Akatsuki could begin. Sasuke would be able to let me know where Madara was." She let her head fall into her hands. "I can still do most of the plan, granted Tsunade will still heal Itachi, regardless of me not being allowed in the village." Kakashi was silent for a moment before standing.

"You should have told us." He left and she slowly got up to pack a few things. An hour later and she was sitting on her bed and staring at her pack. She groaned and flopped back onto the bed.

"I don't want to leave. I love this village."

"We know." Riz jumped up to see Kakashi and Tsunade standing in the doorway.

"What are you doing here?"

"Kakashi told me your plan. So? Why did you go see Sasuke?"

"He called me to him. The mark on my arm signaled that he wanted me. It turned into a map that then led me to him. He wanted Orochimaru to know that he knew about me before he killed him."

"Wait… Orochimaru is dead?"

"Yeah. Sasuke killed him."

"And now he's going after Itachi."

"Yes."

"What if he doesn't slip him that drug? Did you plan for that as well?" Riz shook her head.

"Then Itachi dies. I don't think that will happen."

"Anything else you aren't telling me?"

"… There are members of the Akatsuki that have nothing against Konoha. They've all ready stated that they will not fight against the village. I know at least two would like to join."

"Who are they?"

"Sasori, Deidara, Konan, and Kisame. Konan wants to join the village and Kisame does if Itachi is allowed back." Tsunade looked at her strangely.

"Why only if Itachi can come back?" Kakashi smirked.

"Because Kisame is dating Itachi." Tsunade raised a brow at this.

"Okay… Anything else I should know?"

"Well… no."

"Riz." Her tone was disapproving.

"I'm sorry, but I really can't tell you something I just found out because it's more of a personal matter." Tsunade rolled her eyes and Kakashi raised a brow.

"Fine. You don't have to leave the village, but when you go to get Itachi you have to take a team with you."

"What team?"

"Kakashi's." She left and Riz turned to him.

"Why did you convince her to let me stay?" He smiled and sat next to her.

"I couldn't let you leave again. Not when I get a choice in the matter." He grinned and brushed a covered kiss to her cheek. "I should be rewarded."

"Is that why? So you could get some?" He pulled away.

"No. I talked to her because I didn't want you to leave." He patted her head and pulled her close to him. "You were upset. I hate seeing you like that. You could've broken up with me and I still would have talked to her." Riz let her head be lain on his lap and closed her eyes.

"Kakashi…"

"I love you." She only nodded slightly, words ripped from her throat as she smiled. It was the first time he'd ever said those words.

The next morning she watched as Kakashi put Sakura and Naruto through the bell test again. She smiled and activated the sharingan to fully measure their growth. When Naruto began to shout out the ending to Kakashi's book she nearly fell out of the tree. She actually did from laughter when they got the bells. Naruto and Sakura laughed with her as Kakashi shot a her small glare. He smiled and looked back at his students as he congratulated them. Naruto grinned and pointed at Riz.

"Did you wanna try?"

"Oh no. I think I'll pass."

"Oh come on! Are you afraid I'll beat you now that I'm stronger?"

"Not too much. It was fun watching you though. You really have improved. You too Sakura, I didn't know you had gotten that good." They all grinned and Riz got back into the tree as they left, knowing they were supposed to get a new member for the team. She laid on a branch and watched the wind tug at the leaves before flipping down and going to see Tsunade. She made sure to knock and smiled when Tsunade glared at her.

"What could you possibly want all ready?"

"It's about those other Akatsuki members. Is there a possibility of them joining the village? At least Konan?"

"I don't know. We'd have to talk to the council. It's going to be hard enough to convince them to allow your brothers back in."

"Right…" She sat in a chair and looked around the room for a moment. "About that personal matter I mentioned…"

"Did you decide to tell me finally?"

"You have to promise to not let anyone know about it. Especially Iruka." Tsunade's brow furrowed but she nodded.

"All right. As long as it's not important to security or anything."

"It's not really. It's one of the reasons I'm pushing to get Konan allowed in Konoha."

"Okay then. What is it?"

"She's pregnant."

"What does that have to do with…" Tsunade sat back suddenly, her eyes wide. "It's Iruka's?"

"Yeah… I figured it out and she told me not to tell Iruka. She wants me to hurry up and prevent the possible war and everything. She really wants to join the village. Probably mainly because of Iruka."

"…Have you talked to Iruka since you found out?" Riz shook her head.

"No. I've been avoiding him all day just so I wouldn't accidentally give something away." Tsunade pulled out a book and began to flip through it.

"This changes everything. Did you know there's an old law that no one ever bothered to get rid of? Most people don't even remember it."

"What's it about?"

"The separation of families and couples. The Second put it into effect because of all the families that got torn apart because one of them wasn't a member of the village. They would still be questioned and watched over of course, but they would be allowed in Konoha."

"Tsunade wait… This can apply to Itachi and Sasuke too because of me."

"Unless they kick you or Iruka out."

"There might be a riot if anyone tries to get rid of Iruka."

"But not with you, because you came to the village under false premise." Riz sighed and leaned back before slowly smiling.

"It works with couples too doesn't it?"

"Yes, why?"

"Kakashi." Tsunade shook her head.

"It's a stretch Riz. You know how the council is. They'll argue it."

"I was dating Kakashi before I left, and now. There's no doubt to anyone that we're a couple, regardless of who I am."

"It's possible… and they can't really argue about Konan, especially since she's pregnant. And if your brothers are allowed in then Kisame should be too." Riz grinned.

"I love this law. Thank you so much for telling me about it. I should buy you a drink."

"I'll hold you to that."

"I wouldn't dream of getting out of it. How about three days from now?"

"Why three days?" Riz shrugged.

"It's a good number, and my schedule is full until then with training." Tsunade nodded.

"I'll see you then."

xXx

Riz dragged herself out of her apartment and walked down the streets on the day she promised Tsunade. She slumped into a chair at the bar and let her head fall solidly onto the counter. She barely turned her head to look up when Tsunade sat next to her.

"You look horrible. Training that bad?"

"Worse." She groaned out. "I'm exhausted." Tsunade laughed and handed her some pills.

"Here. They'll keep you going long enough to finish the day."

"My day ends after this."

"I figured. Take them." Riz swallowed the pills and sat up with another groan.

"Okay. Try not to use all my money."

"How much do you have?" Riz half-heartedly glared at the buxom woman.

"Let me rephrase that. No more than two bottles total."

"That's it?"

"They're all yours. You don't have to share."

"Fine. Two bottles it is. I'll even order them together so you can get some rest." Riz yawned and nodded.

"Thanks. Sorry I'm no fun today."

"From what I heard about what you've been doing, I'd be more surprised if you were. And I didn't hear about everything, I'm sure."

"Gai, Hiashi, Kakashi, Anko, Shin, myself… I think that's about it. I haven't had more than three hours of sleep yet." Tsunade ordered the bottles and Riz laid the money down.

"Go get some rest. I do not want to see you dragged to the hospital anytime soon." Tsunade poured herself a glass and smiled when Riz ambled out, quickly being dragged away by Kakashi.

Riz stayed in her apartment for the next two days to recuperate, getting yelled at by Kakashi whenever she tried to do anything harder than a flash tag or walking on the walls. She finally got fed up with it and snuck out after he had gone to see his team. She knew she had a couple hours since Naruto was training to control Kyuubi more, unless Kakashi skipped out again. She skirted down an alley and carefully picked her way to the Hyuuga complex. She grinned when she managed to get in and headed straight to see Hiashi. She was about to open the door when a hand landed on her shoulder and she paled slightly.

"Going somewhere?"

"Just thought a chat with Hiashi would be nice." He began to pull her away and she looked forlornly at the building. "Come on Kashi… I'm over rested now!"

"Three days training like that, three days rest. You've done two."

"Now I know what it would've felt like to be arrested." Kakashi smiled slightly, but stopped moving when Hiashi grabbed him.

"Let her go. She'll be fine."

"You don't know that. After all the training she did, you couldn't possibly know."

"I know she can take care of herself. And considering I trained with her as well, I do know." They glared at each other for a while. Riz looked between them and smiled.

"Can I put in my opinion?"

"No." They both spoke at the same time and Riz sat on the ground with a pout. A few more minute of them basically having a mental battle and she finally got fed up with it. Reaching up and grabbing their shirts she jerked them forward to smash into each other. They glared down at her and she glared right back.

"As touching as your concern is for my welfare, this is ridiculous. I do not need to be taken care of, and certainly not fought over like I'm the shiny new toy." She got up and instantly got a hand on each shoulder.

"You're not exactly new." She growled and turned back to glare at them again. The glare faltered and she looked down at her arm, Hiashi and Kakashi following her gaze.

"Kakashi… Get your team ready." They watched as the Uchiha mark fully appeared before Kakashi disappeared. Riz watched her arm for a while longer as it slowly switched to a map before looking up at Hiashi. "Tsunade told you everything, right?"

"Yes."

"… I'm going to need help when I fight Madara."

"When?"

"Not sure. The rest of the Akatsuki are powerful, and I'll have my hands full with Madara. Can I count on you?"

"Yes. I'm sure you can count on everyone." Riz nodded and smiled lightly before going to tell Tsunade. She met up with Kakashi at the gates and nodded before they took off. A few hours later and they stopped to rest.

"Where are we going?"

"Kakashi only told us we had a mission. He didn't explain what it was." Riz looked over at the two.

"We got a reported sighting of Sasuke and are going after him."

"Sasuke?"

"What are we waiting for! Let's go get him back!" Riz bit her lip.

"It's foolish to run ourselves ragged just getting to him."

"What aren't you telling us?" They all looked over at Sai.

"I don't know what you mean."

"A reported sighting isn't much to go off. Certainly not enough to send us out after him."

"Apparently it is. Come on, rest's over." Sakura glanced at Sai before watching Riz grab her pack and jump into the trees, Kakashi right behind her. She shook her head and followed them regardless of her suspicions. They only stopped one other time before reaching a clearing. It was obvious a battle had been going on, but from the lack of sound they deduced that it was over. They split up and began to look around. Kakashi went with Riz, grabbing her arm once they were far enough away from the others.

"Those rests were you buying time for the fight to end, weren't they?" She nodded.

"Yeah… I just hope I didn't wait too long…" She looked up and saw a wall with the Uchiha crest on it and ran over there, skidding onto her knees next to Itachi. Kakashi knelt down a second later and felt for a pulse.

"Riz…"

"He's drugged… It's okay… He just needs some healing and he'll be fine… I did wait too long… I don't have time to get him back to Tsunade."

"We have Sakura." Riz shook her head.

"They still believe Itachi to be evil, remember? She'd never agree to it."

"No choice but to try." He got up and called her over. She left Naruto with Sai and jumped over to them.

"What's wrong?" She looked down and took a step back. "Itachi! Is he dead finally?" Riz shook her head.

"Luckily not. Sakura… I need you to heal him."

"What? No! Why should I?"

"Because he's important!" Kakashi grabbed Sakura's shoulder.

"Because we could use him to lure Sasuke to us. You just need to heal him enough so he doesn't die on the way back to Konoha." She looked between them and shook her head.

"You're all crazy. He's the reason Sasuke left in the first place! I thought we were here to find him!"

"Sasuke's obviously not here. Please Sakura, we're running out of time." Sakura's eyes narrowed.

"I get it now. You never were in love with Sasuke like we thought. You loved Itachi. Sasuke just happened to look similar." Riz groaned and grabbed the girl.

"Sakura, I will explain everything to you when we get back to Konoha. For now I just need you to heal him. Tsunade would."

"How do you know?"

"Because she said so a while ago. Now please." Sakura glared at her and glanced up at Kakashi.

"Are you sure about this?"

"Yes." She sighed and placed her hands over Itachi's chest.

"Stay out of the way then." Riz nodded and stood up.

"I'll go help Naruto and Sai look for clues on Sasuke." Kakashi nodded and pulled out his book.

"I'll stay with Sakura." Riz looked back at Itachi once more before going over to the boys. She smiled and sat a bit away from them, watching as they argued. Her mind wandered off as she worried about Itachi and how soon she may have to fight Madara. She shook her head when Kakashi came up next to her.

"Time to go. Lead the team back, I'll carry Itachi. Sakura's going to stay next to me just in case." She nodded and stood up.

"Okay boys, we're not going to find anything else. Let's go back."

"No way! He was here! We should spread out and search for him!"

"Naruto he's long gone by now. We're leaving." He grumbled as he grabbed his pack and followed her, Sai close behind. Kakashi and Sakura followed them a minute later so Naruto and Sai wouldn't see Itachi. They didn't stop for any rests and neither boy asked why. Riz left them just inside the village, telling them she was going to report to Tsunade. She barged into her office and grabbed her arm.

"Sakura had to heal him a bit when we got there. She's with Kakashi and taking him into the hospital room." Tsunade nodded and followed her out, quickly making their way to the hospital and going to the top floor. It had been set up a while ago to make sure he would be alone and difficult for others to get to so they could work in peace. She strode into the room, ignoring Sakura's questions and began to look over Itachi.

"This'll take some time. Sakura I'm going to need you to help me with this."

"But Lady Tsunade he's an enemy!"

"No he's not. I'll personally make sure you get an explanation later, but until then I need your help."

"I… No. I can't help you save him." Tsunade nodded and glanced at Riz.

"You'll have to then. Just do exactly as I say."

"I'll try." She went to the other side of the bed and looked up at Sakura forlornly.

"You need to leave Sakura. You too Kakashi." He disappeared, but Sakura gaped at her teacher.

"Why? Why are you helping him?"

"Get her out of here Riz." Sakura looked between them as Riz grabbed her arm.

"What's going on? Riz was the name of an Uchiha." The door shut behind them and Riz turned Sakura around to look at her.

"Itachi is not evil, my name isn't Atsura, and Sasuke only left the village because I told him to. I'll explain everything else after Itachi is on the mend, but we need your help. I am not skilled enough to do this. Okay?" Sakura started to shake her head before stopping herself and nodding once.

"Who are you then?"

"Riz. I'm Sasuke's and Itachi's sister. Now please, help my brother."

"Sister…?" Riz pushed Sakura towards the door.

"There's no time!" Sakura shook her head quickly and entered the room to help Tsunade. Riz watched for a second before closing the door and slumping against the wall next to it, clasping her hands together to stop their shaking. After she had calmed down she went to find Iruka. She silently slipped into his house and looked around, sighing when he wasn't there.

"Riz."

"Konan… I take it this means you've told Iruka."

"Yesterday. He all ready spoke to the Hokage. I'm allowed to stay here."

"I know."

"… I cannot fight with you." Riz smiled and finally looked over at the woman.

"I wouldn't want you to. Hopefully you'll stay here with Iruka."

"You're not taking him?"

"No. I would never forgive myself if he got hurt and he can help out here in Konoha. Keep order and everything; he's good at that. Amazingly so."

"Yes. How is Itachi?"

"… I don't know. Sakura and Tsunade are working on him, but… there's no way of knowing yet."

"It will be fine. You should get some rest." Riz nodded and went back to her apartment. She walked around the apartment continuously, too nervous to sit still. After half an hour of random pacing she gave up and went to the training grounds. Too distracted with her worry over Itachi she didn't even notice Naruto on the other side of the field. Naruto grabbed her and flipped her into the air a moment later. She landed clumsily and stared at him.

"What?"

"Didn't mean to scare you. I called you a couple times, but you weren't listening." He grinned sheepishly and she sighed, letting herself fall back.

"Sorry Naruto. I'm a bit distracted today."

"I noticed. What's wrong? Is it because we didn't find Sasuke?" He slumped next to her. Riz looked over at his sad face and sighed.

"No. I knew we weren't going to. It would have been terrible if we had."

"What? Why? We need to bring him back!" She stared up at the sky.

"No we don't. We just need to hope everything works out."

"What are you talking about Atsura? You're not making any sense."

"No… I suppose I'm not. I'll see you later Naruto." She disappeared and went back to the hospital. She ignored the nurses and pushed her way through them to the top floor. Once there she stared at the door to Itachi's room, jumping slightly when Tsunade said she could go in. She peeked inside to see Itachi sleeping peacefully and Tsunade slumped into the chair next to him. She stepped inside and saw Sakura sitting on a different chair in the corner. They both looked exhausted, but Tsunade smiled at her anyway.

"We've done everything we can for him and it looks like he's going to make a full recovery. The only problem we had was his eyes. We reversed some of the damage, but I doubt he'll ever be able to use the sharingan again without losing his sight completely." Riz nodded and slumped against the door with a half sob.

"So he'll be okay… Thank you…" Tsunade got up and stretched before leaving.

"Thank Sakura." Riz looked up after the door had closed to find Sakura watching her. She wasn't glaring or anything, just watching her. Riz smiled slightly and went to sit next to Itachi.

"Thank you Sakura… It must have been bad, you're too tired to even glare at me now."

"… You must have been worried. You look like you want to cry." Riz looked back down at Itachi and nodded.

"You're right. A cry sounds pretty good right about now, but I promised to explain the truth to you."

"Now's as good a time as any." Riz smiled and kept a hand clasped over Itachi's as she began to explain everything. The true reason for the massacre, why Sasuke left, Orochimaru's death, and how Sasuke signals her. Sakura stayed quiet throughout the entire explanation; just watched her calmly. Riz finally finished and leaned back with a glance at Itachi.

"I wanted to protect this village and my brothers. Those are the two most important things to me and I would sacrifice everything for them."

"Even yourself?"

"What?"

"Would you die to save them? Or be arrested?" Riz smiled at the girl.

"Yes. I would gladly give my life for this village and them."

"You…" Sakura sighed. "Why didn't you just tell everyone?"

"Do you really think that would have gone over well? If everyone knew then the council would have had me arrested and I would never have been able to help either Sasuke or Itachi."

"And just how have you helped Sasuke? You sent him away from the village! You had him betray us!"

"If I hadn't talked with him he would have left anyway and hate Konoha. If I hadn't sent him out Orochimaru would still be alive and Itachi would most likely have died. I gave him the choice to stay, and after he killed Orochimaru I asked him to return. He wanted to go through with my original plan in order to protect this village. I'm sorry that you got hurt, I really am, but it was the best I could do."

"So this Madara is that horrible? That you would risk one of your brothers?"

"Unfortunately… Madara is an Uchiha, and a powerful one at that. He's completely mastered the sharingan to the point where…" Riz bit her lip and glanced over to make sure Itachi was still sleeping. "These are secrets that no one outside of the family has been allowed to hear. When fully mastered the sharingan can enable the user to transcend dimensions. The user can fight from another dimension entirely so you will not see him, or be able to touch him, but he can hit you. Madara never uses that fully. He is in a constant half state. The only time you can touch him is when he's attacking you. He becomes… well solid I guess. However, he is able to fully immerse himself. The drawback of such a move is the amount of chakra it takes and the recovery time for your eyes afterwards."

"How are we supposed to fight something like that?"

"You're not. That's the point. I didn't want you to try anyway. Hopefully everyone will be fighting the other Akatsuki members." Riz glanced over at the door. "That goes for you too Tsunade." The door slid open and Tsunade glared at her.

"And just who is going to fight Madara then?"

"I am."

"What makes you think you can beat him? You just described him to sound invincible."

"Yes, well… He might be unless his opponent also has the sharingan."

"Unless you can prove to me that you've completely mastered the sharingan and can handle this problem then there is no way anyone will let you fight him alone." Both women watched her as she sighed and looked back down at Itachi before finally standing up.

"I'm going to get something to eat. Meet me at the training grounds in half an hour?" Tsunade nodded and let her walk past before patting Sakura on the shoulder.

"Were you surprised?"

"Of course! She's supposed to be dead and here she is planning…" Sakura sighed, "I should be angry, but I can't blame her for trying to save her brothers. And I can understand the reasoning for not telling anyone about the massacre before." Her head fell into her hands. "It all makes sense."

"Sadly enough. Did you want to come with me to see her try and prove herself?"

"No… I'll stay here and watch over Itachi." Tsunade clasped her shoulder again before leaving. She waited in the middle of the clearing until Riz ambled in.

"I'm not going to show you the full effect because it's exhausting and we have no idea when we'll have to move out. All I need you to do is attack me."

"Attack you?"

"Yes. I won't be hurt even if you use full strength. You should just pass right through me. Please hurry, I can't have people showing up to watch." Riz glanced around again and Tsunade rushed her, aiming her fist at her stomach. She gasped when she fell through to the other side. She looked back up at Riz and attempted to kick her away, watching as her leg went right through her.

"… I can't touch you… You were serious." Riz nodded and looked back at her with the sharingan.

"I promised not to lie to you about these matters anymore. I wasn't going to go back on that." She smiled and deactivated the sharingan. "You believe me now? I have to be the one to fight Madara. I need everyone else to take care of the rest of the Akatsuki."

"And if you die? Did you plan for that? Because your brothers will have nothing tying them to the village without you."

"Sasuke does. Naruto and Sakura will help him, and then he could help Itachi."

"They wouldn't be enough and you know it. Maybe for Sasuke, but someone would have to claim Itachi and vouch for him. Someone with high standing."

"Kakashi?" Tsunade dusted herself off.

"No… He's too close to you, but without actual attachment. I'll let you think on it."

"Guess I just shouldn't die." Tsunade smiled at her.

"That'd be best. You should still think on it, just in case. Then even if the council hates you and considers you a traitor you'd have a backup." Riz nodded and watched as she left before heading back to her apartment to rest. Kakashi was waiting for her and she waved him off as she stumbled onto the bed and fell asleep. He watched her for a minute before heading to the hospital. He popped in through the window and narrowly missed getting hit by Sakura. She glared at him, but let him come in anyway. She waved at Itachi with a sigh.

"He should be waking up soon. Where's Riz?"

"Asleep. I can watch him for a bit Sakura. You can go."

"I'm fine here. And don't try and get me to leave because I am his attending physician right now." He glanced over at her and smiled.

"You've grown, haven't you?" She shot another glare at him.

"What do you want?"

"Me? I'm just checking up on Itachi since Riz can't."

"So you have nothing better to do." He shrugged and leaned against a wall nearby.

"Maa… Maybe I should be checking up on you. You don't look too happy about all this." Sakura sighed.

"I shouldn't be. However, it all makes perfect sense and explains everything. What I'm pissed about is how she sent Sasuke out of the village!"

"What?" Kakashi and Sakura looked over to see Itachi slowly sit up to glare.

"She… She didn't tell you?"

"No." He began to get up. "Where is she?" Kakashi suddenly forced him back onto the bed as Sakura spoke.

"You need to rest. You're still severely injured and we can't have you suddenly walking around the village. So stay in bed."

"Perhaps you should arrest me then."

"Do you know how much of a fit Riz would throw if we did that?" Tsunade grinned as she walked in. "Of course you do, so don't suggest it again." Itachi glared at her and Tsunade waved it off. "Now, about your condition. You're going to need to stay in bed for a week while you heal. You are not able to use the sharingan anymore without going blind permanently. Luckily you're still able to see currently. I'm going to give you some medicine that you have to take for the next two weeks because of the lung disease, but if everything goes well you should be perfectly fine. I do need to know if and when you feel any pain or discomfort, especially around your eyes."

"I will be fine. Where is Riz?"

"If you were fine you wouldn't be here right now. And she's sleeping. I'll have Kakashi bring her here in an hour."

"Now." Tsunade stopped smiling.

"You are my patient and are definitely not in a position to be making demands. You're not allowed to leave this room because it would cause a panic and you'd be arrested. Then Riz probably would be too. Now unless you want that I suggest you just stay there and wait."

"Care to tell me why I am not arrested all ready?"

"Like I said; Riz would throw a fit. Sakura's going to be watching over you so try and behave until Riz gets here." Tsunade walked out as Itachi turned to stare at the window. Kakashi slowly grinned.

"Should I make you mad at me instead of her?" There was no answer and Kakashi grinned wider. "I slept with your sister." Itachi was out of bed with his hands around Kakashi's throat before Sakura had time to blink. She jumped up and tried to pull Itachi off, only to have a kunai pressed against her throat by a clone. Kakashi narrowed his eye and threw Itachi off when he tried to use the sharingan. He was back up in less than a second with kunai ready to throw when a hand landed on his shoulder from the window.

"No wonder I couldn't stay asleep. It's impossible for you two to be in the same room together without incident." Itachi turned on her.

"You slept with him?" She blinked and shot a small half-hearted glare at Kakashi.

"Why would you tell him that?" Kakashi shrugged and Riz sighed.

"Yes Aniki, I slept with my boyfriend. No, I am not pregnant. Now will you please get back in bed to rest?" Itachi sat down and glared at her.

"Why did you send Sasuke out of the village?" Riz's head fell.

"It was the best I could come up with. Orochimaru's dead now, and you're alive. Sasuke's also going to tell me Madara's whereabouts before the village is attacked. Once I get his signal I will go to fight Madara while others fight, and hopefully kill, the remaining Akatsuki."

"You cannot fight Madara alone."

"Yes I can. I have no other choice." She glared when he tried to speak. "I am not letting you fight him. Especially since you can no longer use the sharingan."

"I can use it."

"You'll go blind. And it probably won't work for long anyway." He glared at her.

"I can fight without it."

"I don't care. You should know very well that fighting Madara without the sharingan is next to pointless." They glared at each other before Sakura finally stood up and pushed Riz into a chair.

"Quit fighting with each other! There is a war that we're completely unprepared for where your brother is caught in the middle and the only thing you can think to do is argue?" She glared at them and they stared at her with wide eyes before Riz glanced down.

"Sorry Sakura, you're right. This is pointless. He should just listen to me and accept it." Itachi opened his mouth to reply when Sakura punched her.

"You should stop making plans on your own too! They aren't always the best! Why don't you try asking for other ideas!" Riz blinked up at the girl from her new position on the floor before shrugging.

"All right. Does anyone here have a better plan than to collectively attack the remaining Akatsuki members while I fight Madara? Raise your hand if you do." She sighed when all three hands went into the air. "Fine, Itachi?"

"I will fight-"

"No." He was about to argue when she glared at him with the sharingan. "You are injured and would be killed. The severity of your injuries make you a hindrance instead of a help. You know I'm right so stop being so stubborn." He turned to stare out the window and Riz turned to Sakura. "What's your idea?"

"Leading them into a trap and getting rid of them one at a time."

"Wouldn't work. Zetsu's a remarkably good spy and can mold into walls as well as split his body in two."

"Okay… How about you tell us everything you know about the Akatsuki members and accept help in fighting Madara. Won't Sasuke want to help?" Riz bit her lip and glanced at Itachi cautiously.

"I had hoped someone would take him back to the village. I could knock him out or someone else can, but I don't want him to fight. I've put him in enough danger as it is." Sakura gaped at her, Itachi and Kakashi showing similar signs of shock.

"How could you even think that would work?"

"Are you insane?"

"It's foolish." She waited for them to quiet down before getting up with a yawn.

"It was foolish and insane to leave the village in the first place too. And there are plenty of things that have occurred that no one thought would work. Besides, I'm going to be fighting Madara and there's no guarantee for survival there. Itachi, you're next to useless at the moment and I would love for Sasuke to have some family here and refuse to let him die, and the Uchiha name with him."

"… What about Itachi? He'll still be here." Riz blinked at the girl before rolling her eyes.

"He's also gay. So can't count on any children or anything from him."

"Why so you care so much about the Uchiha name? You killed them off in the first place."

"Would you rather I have left them alone? The Uchihas could be running the village or completely wiped out then. Or Sasuke would still be alive and despise the village for killing his family off." she shook her head and went back to the window. "… I'm tired and have a feeling this fight will begin sooner than later. So before I go, what did you have to say Kashi?"

"… I can find out more about the Akatsuki by talking to Konan or Itachi. I think keeping Sasuke out of the fight is ridiculous, but understandable from your point of view. He's going to be extremely upset with you from it. I can try and help you fight Madara, but either way you need to tell others who you are and what's going on." She nodded slowly.

"By any chance could you explain everything to Naruto then? I'm sure word will get around after that."

"Okay, but he'll probably wake you up."

"I know… So wait a bit so I can try and get some sleep. It might take you a while to explain it to him. Thank you Kashi."

"I'm serious about fighting Madara with you." She sighed.

"… I know, but it won't be easy and you'd better not get in the way…" Itachi grabbed her before she could leave.

"Riz… How much have you mastered the sharingan?"

"As much as possible… Which is why I can fight him." She jumped away and he glanced back at Kakashi.

"What do you know?"

* * *

**Oh I do so love leaving my readers (few that I have based on review averages for each chapter) hanging, waiting to see how the plot unravels itself! Oh, and by the way, if you have any guesses or ideas on what happens next or even things you would like to see (not saying I'll put them in for sure, but worth a try) do feel free to pm me or put it in... wait for it... A REVIEW! Hope you all enjoyed it so very much.**


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